Piper PA-25 accident near Warner, Oklahoma, October 10, 1991
On October 10, 1991 at about 5:45 pm local time, a Piper PA-25, registered N8516L, was destroyed in an accident near Warner, Oklahoma. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE COMPLETE LOSS OF ENGINE POWER FOR UNDETERMINED REASON.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 10, 1991 · about 5:45 pm local time
- Place
- Warner, Oklahoma · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-25 · all PA-25s on the register
- Registration
- N8516L · no longer on the register · serial 25-4934
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT COMPLETED THE FIRST APPLICATION OF DEFOLIANT ON A CULTIVATED FIELD AND AS HE BEGAN HIS TURN FOR ANOTHER PASS, THE ENGINE STARTED TO RUN ROUGH. AS HE COMPLETED HIS TURN, AND LEVELED THE AIRPLANE, HE EXPERIENCED A COMPLETE LOSS OF ENGINE POWER. THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED IN A PLOWED FIELD IN A NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE, SKIDDED 15 FEET, CAUGHT ON FIRE AND EXPLODED. THE POWERPLANT AND ENGINE COMPONENTS WERE TOO BADLY DAMAGED BY POST-IMPACT FIRE TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE POWER LOSS.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land
- Flight time: 14,200 hours in all; 1,200 in this make and model; 250 in the last 90 days; 85 in the last 30 days; 13,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, January 2, 2000
- Maximum gross weight: 2,900 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-540 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: ARPF Webber Falls OK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:50 pm from TUL, 50 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.