Cessna 320E accident near Kemmerer, Wyoming, October 24, 1982
On October 24, 1982 at about 4:10 am local time, a Cessna 320E, registered N3460Q, was destroyed in an accident near Kemmerer, Wyoming. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. 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 24, 1982 · about 4:10 am local time
- Place
- Kemmerer, Wyoming · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 320E · all 320Es on the register
- Registration
- N3460Q · no longer on the register · serial 320E-0060
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE FLT DEPARTED BIG PINEY AT APPROXIMATELY 2200 & WAS OBSERVED TO CLIMB STRAIGHT OUT FROM RWY 31 TO AN ESTIMATED 7,800 FT MSL. THE ACFT THEN TURNED TO A SOUTHWESTERLY HEADING TOWARD KEMMERER. SHORTLY THEREAFTER A WITNESS AT BIG PINEYHEARD THE PLT ATTEMPT TO CONTACT KEMMERER UNICOM TWICE ON 122.8. HE ALSO HEARD TWO REPETITIONS OF FIVE CLICKS EACH ON THE SAME FREQ. THE RWY LIGHTS AT KEMMERER MIKE ACTIVATED. THE ACFT IMPACTED THE EAST SIDE OF A MOUNTAIN AT THE 9,100 FT LEVEL 16 MI NORTH OF KEMMERER. A WITNESS WHO WAS CAMPING APPROXIMATELY ONE MILE NORTH OF THE ACCIDENT SITE STATED THAT THERE WAS CLOUD COVER. THE PLT HAD A LIVER TISSUE FLUID ETHYL ALCOHOL CONTENT OF 142 MG%.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 41,190 hours in all; 2,503 in this make and model; 72 in the last 90 days; 41,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,420 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 13 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,300 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-B (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: BPI Big Piney WY at 10:00 pm
- Destination: EMM Kemmerer WY
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 95°F (35°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.