Piper PA-60-601 accident near Hillsboro, Texas, June 22, 1987
On June 22, 1987 at about 11:15 pm local time, a Piper PA-60-601, registered N7481S, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hillsboro, Texas. It was a personal 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 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 22, 1987 · about 11:15 pm local time
- Place
- Hillsboro, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-60-601 · all PA-60-601s on the register
- Registration
- N7481S · no longer on the register · serial 61004893
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
APRX 3 MIN AFTER LEVELING AT 6500', THE ACFT BEGAN LOSING PWR DESPITE ATTEMPTS TO REMEDY THE PROBLEM BY USING BOOST PUMP & X-FEED. SUBSEQUENTLY, BOTH ENGS LOST POWER & THE ACFT WAS DAMAGED DRG A WHEELS-UP LNDG IN A MILO FIELD. AN EXAM REVEALED THE UPPER & LOWER FUEL VENT LINES ON BOTH SIDES OF THE ACFT, AS WELL AS THE LOWER VENT LINE DRAINS, WERE PARTIALLY OR FULLY CLOGGED BY HARD DIRT. THE DIRT APPEARED TO HAVE BEEN DEPOSITED BY WASPS. THE ACFT HAD FLOWN ONLY ABOUT 2.7 HRS SINCE THE LAST ANNUAL INSPN ON 6/6/87.
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: 3,850 hours in all; 452 in this make and model; 23 in the last 90 days; 3,440 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,862 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 6, 1987; 2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,700 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-G1B5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: F42 Mesquite TX at 10:50 pm
- Destination: CRP Corpus Christi TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 170° at 16 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 93°F (34°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:49 pm from ACT, 15 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.