Piper PA-32-300 accident near Animas, New Mexico, December 26, 1982
On December 26, 1982 at about 5:35 pm local time, a Piper PA-32-300, registered XAHIJ, was destroyed in an accident near Animas, New Mexico. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under rules the NTSB did not record. 7 people were killed. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
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
- December 26, 1982 · about 5:35 pm local time
- Place
- Animas, New Mexico · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 7 people were killed.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-300 · all PA-32-300s on the register
- Registration
- XAHIJ · no longer on the register · serial 327840020
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · rules the NTSB did not record
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT DEPARTED AGUE PRIETA, SONORA, MEXICO WITH NO FLT PLAN ON A FLT TO JANOS, CHIHUAHUA, MEXICO. DRG DEPARTURE, THE PLT'S SON OBSERVED A DARK THREATENING CLOUD BANK IN THE DIRECTION OF FLT NEAR A MTN RANGE. WHEN THE ACFT DID NOT ARRIVE AT THE DESTINATION, A SEARCH WAS BEGUN WHICH WAS EXTENDED ON THE US SIDE OF THE BORDER. ON 1/15/82, A RANCHER FOUND THE WRECKAGE WHICH WAS SCATTERED OVER AN AREA EXCEEDING 1 MI IN LENGTH. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE TAIL ASSEMBLY, RIGHT WING, ABOUT 1/2 OF THE LEFT WING AND WINDSCREEN HAD SEPARATED IN FLT. NO EVIDENCE WAS FOUND THAT WOULD INDICATE A PREIMPACT MALFUNCTION OR FAILURE OF THE AIRCRAFT, ENGINE, PROPELLER OR ACCESSORIES, EXCEPT FOR SEPARATED COMPONENTS WHICH SHOWED EVIDENCE OF IN-FLT PLT INDUCED OVERLOADS. LOCAL RESIDENTS REPORTED A SEVERE SNOW STORM WITH HEAVY WET SNOW AND REDUCED VISIBILITIES AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. THE PILOT WAS NOT RATED FOR INSTRUMENT FLIGHT. DRG TKOF, THE ACFT WAS APRX 547 LBS OVER ITS MAX GROSS WEIGHT LIMIT, CG APRX 2 IN BEHIND AFT LIMIT.
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, foreign licence
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,203 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1AS (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Agua Prieta at 9:50 am
- Destination: Janos
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 050° at 15 knots
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 95°F (35°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:56 am from DOU, 50 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 6 |
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.