Piper PA-28R-200 accident near Cut Bank, Montana, December 17, 1982
On December 17, 1982 at about 11:10 pm local time, a Piper PA-28R-200, registered CGKBJ, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cut Bank, Montana (Cut Bank Municipal airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 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
- December 17, 1982 · about 11:10 pm local time
- Place
- Cut Bank, Montana · Cut Bank Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28R-200 · all PA-28R-200s on the register
- Registration
- CGKBJ · no longer on the register · serial 28R35640
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT EXPERIENCED A TOTAL ELECTRICAL FAILURE WHILE ENROUTE. ON ARRIVAL, THE PILOT SELECTED GEAR DOWN, HOWEVER IT WOULD NOT LOWER. HE MISIDENTIFIED THE OPERATION OF THE EMERGENCY GEAR DOWN SWITCH AND PUSHED IT UP INSTEAD OF DOWN. THE PILOT STATED THAT HE MADE THE APPROACH WITH HIGH POWER AND ONE NOTCH OF FLAPS. THIS WOULD HAVE PRECLUDED THE AIRCRAFT'S AUTOMATIC GEAR EXTENSION SYSTEM FROM FUNCTIONING. THE AIRCRAFT LANDED GEAR UP WITH SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE AND NO INJURIES TO THE OCCUPANTS. DURING AN INVESTIGATION, AN ALTERNATOR OUT WIRE WAS FOUND BROKEN WHERE IT CONNECTED TO A TERMINAL LUG.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 430 hours in all; 120 in this make and model; 30 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 430 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,744 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 126 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,600 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-C1C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: JR4 Eston, Saskatch at 2:00 pm
- Destination: 4SD Reno NV
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 22, 5,300 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 18 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 99°F (37°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:19 pm from CTB
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.