Piper PA-36-285 accident near Anson, Texas, June 4, 1983
On June 4, 1983 at about 2:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-36-285, registered N57751, was destroyed in an accident near Anson, Texas. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person was 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
- June 4, 1983 · about 2:00 pm local time
- Place
- Anson, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-36-285 · all PA-36-285s on the register
- Registration
- N57751 · registry record · serial 36-7660058
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ACCORDING TO THE PLT, WHILE IN FLT, THE ENG WAS RUNNING SMOOTH, BUT SEEMED TO LACK POWER. HE CHECKED THE INSTRUMENTS & NOTED THAT THE MANIFOLD PRESSURE & ENG RPM WERE NORMAL. THEN WHILE AT APRX 60 FT AGL, ALL POWER WAS LOST. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ACFT CRASHED ON ROLLING TERRAIN. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE ACFT WAS NEAR ITS MAX WT LIMIT & THAT THE PLT DID NOT JETTISON HIS LOAD. A TEARDOWN OF THE ENG REVEALED THAT THE #1 EXHAUST VALVE ROCKER SHAFT COVER WAS MISSING. THE RESPECTIVE SHAFT HAD COME OUT & ALLOWED THE ROCKER ARM TO COME LOOSE. ALSO, THE TOP RINGS ON THE #1 & #4 CYLINDER WERE FOUND TO BE BROKEN. THERE WAS EVIDENCE THAT THESE HAD BEEN BROKEN FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME. ADDITIONALLY, OIL WAS FOUND ON THE AIR SIDE OF THE FUEL CONTROL MANIFOLD. THE ENG HAD ONLY 43 HRS FLT TIME SINCE MAJOR OVERHAUL.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,336 hours in all; 450 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 4,284 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 822 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, February 18, 1983; 41 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,400 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-720-A1B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Anson TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:37 pm from ABI
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.