Piper PA-28-181 accident near Weaverville, California, June 26, 1984
On June 26, 1984 at about 6:30 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-181, registered N3070G, was destroyed in an accident near Weaverville, California (Lonnie Pool Field). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 26, 1984 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Weaverville, California · Lonnie Pool Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-181 · all PA-28-181s on the register
- Registration
- N3070G · registry record · serial 28-7990198
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHEN THE PLT FILED A VFR FLT PLAN, HE STATED THAT HE WAS AWARE THAT THE ARPT AT WEAVERVILLE, CA, WAS A ONE WAY STRIP & THAT HE HAD A GUIDE BOOK WHICH SHOWED THIS INFO. PUBLISHED PROCEDURES CALLED FOR ACFT TO 'LAND ON RWY 36, TAKE-OFF RWY 18.' A CAUTION NOTE STATED, 'DUE HIGH TERRAIN SURROUNDING FIELD AND STEEP RWY GRADIENT (3.5%), IF GO-AROUND NECESSARY, START EARLY WHILE STILL HIGH. TREES AT N END ARE 175' HIGHER THAN RWY 36 THRESHOLD! NO GO-AROUND AFTER TOUCH DOWN. NO TOUCH-AND-GO.' DURING ARRIVAL, THE ACFT WAS OBSERVED TO DESCEND TO ABOUT 15 TO 20 FT AGL WITH APRX 2500 FT OF RWY REMAINING WHEN THE PLT INITIATED A GO-AROUND.SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH TREES NORTH OF THE ARPT, CRASHED & BURNED. THE PLT SAID THAT ON FINAL APCH, HE ENCOUNTERED TURBULENT AIR & BELIEVED HE WAS HIGH ENOUGH TO GO AROUND; HOWEVER, HE WAS UNABLE TO OUT CLIMB THE RISING TERRAIN. THE DENSITY ALT WAS APRX 4450 FT. WITNESSES REPORTED THE WIND WAS FROM 180 DEG AT 4 KTS.
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: single-engine land
- Flight time: 103 hours in all; 103 in this make and model; 4 in the last 90 days; 70 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,174 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 12, 1984; 75 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A4M (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Navajo Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: 086 Trinity Center CA at 6:00 pm
- Destination: RDD Redding CA
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 36, 3,380 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 75 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 11:28 am
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number LAX84FA367.