Piper PA-601P accident near Bentonville, Arkansas, February 22, 1985
On February 22, 1985 at about 1:40 pm local time, a Piper PA-601P, registered N60817, was destroyed in an accident near Bentonville, Arkansas (Bentonville Muni airport). It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. 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
- February 22, 1985 · about 1:40 pm local time
- Place
- Bentonville, Arkansas · Bentonville Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-601P
- Registration
- N60817 · no longer on the register · serial 61P075880633
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT CONTACTED LIVESTOCK, A FENCE AND THE GEAR COLLAPSED DURING A FORCED LANDING FOLLOWING A LOSS OF PWR ON THE RIGHT ENG. THE PLT REPORTED THAT AFTER HE FEATHERED THE RIGHT ENG PROP AND LOWERED THE GEAR HE NOTED THE AUX HYDRAULIC SYSTEM PRESSURE GAGE WAS INDICATING ZERO. POST ACCIDENT INSPECTION DISCLOSED EVIDENCE OF AN OIL LEAK FROM THE LEFT LOWER SECTION OF THE RIGHT ENG. TESTS REVEALED THE LEAK ORIGINATED FROM THE OIL COOLER PRESSURE LINE WHICH FAILED DUE TO SEVERE CORROSION OF THE WIRE BRAID AND DEFORMATION OF THE INNER COVER. TESTING OF THE AUX HYDRAULIC PRESSURE PUMP DISCLOSED THE 35 AMPERE CURRENT LIMITER WAS BLOWN AND 40 AMPERES WERE REQUIRED TO DRIVE THE PUMP MOTOR.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,232 hours in all; 19 in this make and model; 35 in the last 90 days; 1,142 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 616 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 15, 1984; 95 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,000 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-S1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: H00 at 1:35 pm
- Destination: LIT Little Rock AR
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 35, 4,090 ft by 65 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Wind: from 170° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,300 ft; not recorded at 1,300 ft
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 59°F (15°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:27 pm from FYV, 20 miles away
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.