Piper PA-28B-140 accident near Salt Lake City, Utah, May 10, 1986
On May 10, 1986 at about 3:55 pm local time, a Piper PA-28B-140, registered N8043N, was destroyed in an accident near Salt Lake City, Utah. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured. 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
- May 10, 1986 · about 3:55 pm local time
- Place
- Salt Lake City, Utah · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28B-140 · all PA-28B-140s on the register
- Registration
- N8043N · no longer on the register · serial 28-25768
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
PLT AND PAX DEPARTED SLC AT 0930 FOR SIGHTSEEING CROSS COUNTRY TRIP TO HEBER CITY AND RETURN. PLT SAID PLAN WAS TO FLY THROUGH LAMBS CANYON AND PARLEY'S CANYON. ACFT HIT TREE AND CRASHED AT 8040 FT MSL LEVEL IN LAMBS CANYON AT APPROXIMATELY 0955. TERRAIN VARIES FROM 6000 FT TO 10,246 FT. PLT WAS SERIOUSLY INJURED. PAX, A U.S. NAVY PLT, WAS KILLED. NO EVIDENCE OF PREIMPACT FAILURE/MALFUNCTION OF AIRFRAME, ENG, PROP, FLIGHT CONTROLS OR SYSTEMS/COMPONENTS.
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; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 74 hours in all; 2 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 36 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,253 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 2, 1986; 5 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,150 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Executive Aircraft Intl.
The flight
- Departed from: SLC Salt Lake City UT at 3:30 pm
- Destination: U36 Heber City UT
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 19 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:50 pm from SLC, 15 miles away
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.