Piper PA-28-181 accident near Stugis, South Dakota, November 29, 1986
On November 29, 1986 at about 11:12 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-181, registered N2161B, was destroyed in an accident near Stugis, South Dakota. It was a ferry flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. 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
- November 29, 1986 · about 11:12 pm local time
- Place
- Stugis, South Dakota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-181 · all PA-28-181s on the register
- Registration
- N2161B · no longer on the register · serial 28-79900121
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Ferry flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT AGREED TO FERRY THE ACFT FOR ANOTHER PLT WHO WAS NOT IFR RATED & WHO HAD BEEN FORCED TO LAND AT KADOKA ON THE PREVIOUS EVENING DUE TO LOW FUEL & APCHG DARKNESS. IMC PREVAILED THRU-OUT THE AREA. THE COMMERCIAL/IFR RATED PLT DID NOT OBTAIN A WX BRIEFING OR FILE A FLT PLAN. HE TOOK OFF & CONTACTED ELLSWORTH AFB APCH CONTROL AT 1535 MST. LATER, HE RPRTD LEVEL AT 6000' MSL & SAID THE TOP OF THE OVERCAST WAS AT 5000'. WHEN TOLD THAT BOTH RAPID CITY & ELLSWORTH AFB WERE BELOW APCH MINS, HE ELECTED TO DIVERT TO SPEARFISH, SD. RADIO & RADAR CONTACT WERE LOST AT 1606. ON THE FOLLOWING AFTERNOON AT 1415, THE WRECKAGE WAS FND WHERE THE ACFT HAD COLLIDED WITH TREES ON A 4800' HIGH MTN AT ABOUT THE 4650' LEVEL. THERE WAS EVIDENCE THE ACFT IMPACTED IN A WINGS LEVEL, SLIGHTLY NOSE LOW ATTITUDE AT CRUISE AIRSPEED. THE COCKPITWAS DESTROYED BY IMPACT & GND FIRE. MEDICAL & TOXICOLOGICAL CHECKS REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF PLT INCAPACITATION. THE ELEV TRIM WAS FND SET IN A SLIGHTLY NOSE-DOWN PSN.
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, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 703 hours in all; 174 in the last 90 days; 19 in the last 30 days; 560 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,775 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 14, 1986
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A4M (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 5V8 Kadoka SD at 9:35 pm
- Destination: SPF Spearfish SD
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 6 knots
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:58 pm from RCA, 22 miles away
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.
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.