Piper PA-24-250 accident near Truth&Consequen, New Mexico, March 11, 1986
On March 11, 1986 at about 6:20 am local time, a Piper PA-24-250, registered N7410P, was destroyed in an accident near Truth&Consequen, New Mexico (Truth & Consequences airport). It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was 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 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 11, 1986 · about 6:20 am local time · cases in 1986
- Place
- Truth&Consequen, New Mexico · Truth & Consequences · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-24-250 · all PA-24-250s on the register
- Registration
- N7410P · no longer on the register · serial 24-2597
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT TOOK OFF ON A NIGHT IFR FLT AFTER BEING BRIEFED ON ADVERSE WX WHICH INCLUDED SEVERE TURBULENCE AND MODERATE MIXED ICING CONDITIONS. THE ACFT WAS NOT EQUIPPED FOR FLT IN ICING CONDITIONS. RADIO AND RADAR CONTACT WITH THE FLT WAS LOST IN THE VICINITY OF THE ACCIDENT SITE LESS THAN ONE MINUTE AFTER THE PLT REPORTED ENCOUNTERING TURBULENCE AND ICING CONDITIONS. A SEARCH WAS INITIATED AND THE ACFT WRECKAGE, SCATTERED OVER AN AREA 3,772 FEET LONG, WAS LOCATED AT 1115 MST, 3/11/86. THE PLT WAS FATALLY INJURED IN THE IMPACT.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 1,657 hours in all; 78 in this make and model; 11 in the last 90 days; 7 in the last 30 days; 1,628 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,930 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 12, 1986; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,900 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-A1D5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Yucca Aviation, CO.
The flight
- Departed from: ABQ Alquerque NM at 5:16 am
- Destination: LRU Las Cruces NM
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 130° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 6,500 ft; scat at 3,200 ft
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:50 am from ABQ
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N7410P: not on the register today · the record of its deregistration
- Piper PA-24 Comanche 2,428 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Piper 44,844 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-A1D5 18 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Truth OR Consequences Municipal · nearest airport
- Albuquerque International Sunport · departed from
- Las Cruces International · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in New Mexico 1,422 since 1982 · 183 in the last ten years
- New Mexico 3,107 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/DEN86FA098.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.