Piper PA-28-161 accident near Ardmore, Oklahoma, August 24, 2001
On August 24, 2001 at about 10:27 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-161, registered N81833, was substantially damaged in an accident near Ardmore, Oklahoma (Ardmore Downtown Executive airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the student pilot's failure to maintain directional control during takeoff roll.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 24, 2001 · about 10:27 pm local time
- Place
- Ardmore, Oklahoma · Ardmore Downtown Executive · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-161 · all PA-28-161s on the register
- Registration
- N81833 · no longer on the register · serial 28-8016222
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot was practicing touch-and-go takeoffs and landings. He had landed, retracted the flaps, and applied full throttle. He then realized that he was left of the runway centerline. He applied right rudder to correct the situation, then "applied too much left rudder to straighten the plane's roll causing the plane to veer to the left." The left main landing gear departed the runway surface. The airplane was headed toward a taxiway light, so the pilot "steered the plane into the infield grass area." The airplane struck a drainage pipe, the nose landing gear collapsed, and the airplane skidded to a stop upright on the taxiway.
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
- Flight time: 30 hours in all; 28 in this make and model; 29 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 2 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,683 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 14, 2001; 17 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,325 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D3G (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DTO Denton TX at 8:30 pm
- Destination: 1F0 Ardmore OK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 17, 5,000 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 6 knots, gusting 11
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.