Piper 601B accident near Houston, Texas, November 2, 1988
On November 2, 1988 at about 9:02 am local time, a Piper 601B, registered N60819, was destroyed in an accident near Houston, Texas (Houston Intercontinental airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
PILOT'S DECISION TO FLY THE APPROACH VISUALLY WITH OUTSIDE REFERENCE TO THE LIGHTS AND INADVERTENTLY DESCENDING BELOW THE DECISION HEIGHT OFF THE PROPER GLIDE PATH.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 2, 1988 · about 9:02 am local time
- Place
- Houston, Texas · Houston Intercontinental
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper 601B
- Registration
- N60819 · no longer on the register · serial 0759-8062149
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT COLLIDED WITH POWER LINES AND TREES WHILE ON FINAL APPROACH. THE REPORTED WEATHER IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE ACCIDENT WAS AN INDEFINITE CEILING ZERO, SKY OBSCURED, AND VISIBILITY 1/16 OF A MILE IN FOG. NO PREIMPACT FAILURES OR MALFUNCTIONS OF THE AIRCRAFT WERE FOUND. THE PILOT HAD DIVERTED FROM HIS INTENDED DESTINATION DUE TO FOG.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: gyroplane; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,887 hours in all; 190 in this make and model; 218 in the last 90 days; 62 in the last 30 days; 2,544 as pilot in command; 1,001 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,202 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 1, 1988; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-51AS (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Conroe Aviation Services INC.
The flight
- Departed from: BTR Baton Rouge LA at 7:35 am
- Destination: CXO Conroe TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 14L, 12,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 220° at 5 knots
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:12 am from IAH
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.
Other NTSB records under N60819 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.