Piper PA-32-301 accident near Wheeling, Illinois, December 29, 1986
On December 29, 1986 at about 10:26 pm local time, a Piper PA-32-301, registered N8281Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Wheeling, Illinois (Pal-Waukee airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 4 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 29, 1986 · about 10:26 pm local time
- Place
- Wheeling, Illinois · Pal-Waukee · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-301 · all PA-32-301s on the register
- Registration
- N8281Y · registry record · serial 32-8106003
- 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 ATTEMPTED FLIGHT ALTHOUGH PIREP'S FOR ICING HAD BEEN ISSUED DURING WEATHER BRIEFING FROM FSS AND AIRCRAFT WAS NOT EQUIPPED FOR ICING CONDITIONS. SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF, PILOT REPORTED TO ATC PROBLEMS WITH AIRCRAFT FLIGHT INSTRUMENTS AND THEN REPORTED PICKING UP ABOUT ONE-HALF INCH OF ICE. ACCORDING TO THE PILOT, HE LOST THEN REGAINED CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT AT LEAST ONCE DURING THE FLIGHT. AFTER ABOUT 45 MINUTES OF ATC CONTACT, THE PILOT MADE A FORCED LANDING. DURING LANDING ROLLOUT THE AIRCRAFT OVERRAN RUNWAY AND COLLIDED WITH A GUARDRAIL.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 539 hours in all; 33 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,321 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 11, 1986; 28 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1G5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Tradewinds Aviation, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: PWK at 9:42 pm
- Destination: PTK Pontiac MI
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 6R, 2,031 ft by 40 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 290° at 4 knots
- Sky: overcast at 1,200 ft; scat at 400 ft
- Temperature: 34°F (1°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:30 pm from PWK, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.