Piper PA-28RT-201T accident near Ogden, Utah, May 25, 1987
On May 25, 1987 at about 7:34 pm local time, a Piper PA-28RT-201T, registered N2888B, was destroyed in an accident near Ogden, Utah (Ogden Municipal airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 people were 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 25, 1987 · about 7:34 pm local time
- Place
- Ogden, Utah · Ogden Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28RT-201T PA-28RT-20 · all PA-28RT-201Ts on the register
- Registration
- N2888B · no longer on the register · serial 28R-7931541
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ACFT DEPARTED RAPID CITY, SD, EN ROUTE TO ELKO, NV. WHILE IN CRUISE FLT IN IMC AT 12,000 FT, ENG LOST ALL PWR. ACFT WAS OVER MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN AND ATC ISSUED PLT VECTORS THROUGH CANYON. ACFT BROKE OUT OF OVERCAST AT 8000 FT MSL (ABOUT 1500 FT AGL) AND 6 MI FROM ARPT. PLT ELECTED TO STRETCH GLIDE AND ATTEMPT LANDING AT ARPT INSTEAD OF LANDING IN NEARBY OPEN AREAS. ACFT STRUCK UNOCCUPIED WAREHOUSE AND CRASHED IN EMPTY SALVAGE YARD ACROSS STREET IN DOWNTOWN OGDEN, UT. DISASSEMBLY OF ENGINE REVEALED CATASTROPHIC FAILURE OF #1 CONNECTING ROD DUE TO FATIGUE. THE FATIGUE HAD ORIGINATED IN AN AREA OF SURFACE DECARBURIZATION AND SCALE INCLUSIONS. TELEDYNE-CONTINENTAL'S SERVICE BULLETIN M86-11 HAD NOT BEEN ACCOMPLISHED.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,382 hours in all; 136 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 17 in the last 30 days; 1,379 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 814 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 1, 1986; 100 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,900 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-360-FB1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: RAP Rapid City SD at 4:04 pm
- Destination: EKO Elko NV
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 19 knots, gusting 30
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 15,000 ft; scat at 3,500 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:35 pm from OGD, 4 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| 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.