Piper PA-23-250 accident near Michigan City, Indiana, December 28, 1983
On December 28, 1983 at about 1:10 pm local time, a Piper PA-23-250, registered N54828, was substantially damaged in an accident near Michigan City, Indiana (Michigan City airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- December 28, 1983 · about 1:10 pm local time
- Place
- Michigan City, Indiana · Michigan City · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-23-250 · all PA-23-250s on the register
- Registration
- N54828 · no longer on the register · serial 27-7554125
- 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 ACFT RAN OFF THE SNOW COVERED RWY INTO SOFT GROUND AND COLLAPSED THE NOSE GEAR. THE PLT SAID THAT DURING ACCELERATION FOR TAKEOFF HE FELT THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR GO OFF THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RWY. HE REDUCED POWER BUT BY THIS TIME THE GEAR WAS IN SOFT GROUND AND THIS PULLED THE ACFT FURTHER OFF THE RWY. THE NOSE GEAR HIT A FURROW IN A CORNFIELD AND COLLAPSED. THE PLT SAID 2 OR 3 INCHES OF NEW SNOW HAD FALLEN DURING THE PREVIOUS NIGHT AND THE RWY WAS NOT PLOWED MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO DETERMINE THE POSITION OF THE CENTERLINE. THE RWY LIGHTS ARE DISPLACED ABOUT 15 FT FROM EITHER SIDE OF THE RWY.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,280 hours in all; 421 in this make and model; 216 in the last 90 days; 2,115 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,947 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 6, 1983; 88 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,200 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: ORD Chicago IL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 2, 4,300 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 600 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 19°F (-7°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 4 |
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.