Piper PA-25-235 accident near Waco, Texas, November 20, 1982
On November 20, 1982 at about 10:45 pm local time, a Piper PA-25-235, registered N6839L, was destroyed in an accident near Waco, Texas. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 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 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 20, 1982 · about 10:45 pm local time
- Place
- Waco, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-25-235 · all PA-25-235s on the register
- Registration
- N6839L · no longer on the register · serial 25745576
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING THE SECOND SWATH RUN THE PILOT STRUCK A POWER WIRE LOCATED IN A TREE LINE. THE AIRCRAFT CRASHED IN A OAT FIELD AND WAS DESTROYED BY GROUND FIRE.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,000 hours in all; 500 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 2 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 149 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,900 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-B2L5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: Waco TX
- Destination: Waco TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 155° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; scat at 8,000 ft
- 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.