Piper PA-34-200T accident near Bloomington, Illinois, November 8, 1986
On November 8, 1986 at about 4:30 pm local time, a Piper PA-34-200T, registered N8156C, was substantially damaged in an accident near Bloomington, Illinois (Bloomington Normal airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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
- November 8, 1986 · about 4:30 pm local time
- Place
- Bloomington, Illinois · Bloomington Normal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-34-200T · all PA-34-200Ts on the register
- Registration
- N8156C · no longer on the register · serial 348070122
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ACCORDING TO THE PLT, THE ACFT BOUNCED UPON TOUCHDOWN. SHE ATTEMPTED TO REFLARE THE ACFT, HOWEVER, IT BOUNCED AGAIN AND A GO-AROUND WAS PERFORMED. THE ACFT WAS THEN LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. FOLLOWING THE LANDING IT WAS DETERMINED THE ACFT HAD RECEIVED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE DURING THE BOUNCED LANDING.
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 single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,044 hours in all; 892 in this make and model; 67 in the last 90 days; 1,710 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,834 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 18, 1986; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,570 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-360-EB (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CMI Savoy IL at 4:05 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29, 6,500 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; scat at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:45 pm from BMI
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.