Piper PA-30 accident near Columbus, Ohio, October 29, 1982
On October 29, 1982 at about 3:56 am local time, a Piper PA-30, registered N7850Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Columbus, Ohio (Port Columbus airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 29, 1982 · about 3:56 am local time
- Place
- Columbus, Ohio · Port Columbus · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-30 · all PA-30s on the register
- Registration
- N7850Y · no longer on the register · serial 30-930
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT TAXIIED ONTO 8 FOOT CULVERT AFTER LANDING. PILOT COMPLAINED OF TAXIWAY MARKINGS AND LIGHTING. HE ALSO SAID HE NEVER SAW THE CULVERT.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,900 hours in all; 104 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 50 in the last 30 days; 2,800 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,868 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 72 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-320-B1A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Raf Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: BKL Cleveland OH at 11:05 pm
- Destination: C Marango IA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, bright
- Wind: from 140° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 126°F (52°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.