Piper PA-28-236 accident near Ajo, Arizona, June 27, 1985
On June 27, 1985 at about 6:50 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-236, registered N8253C, was destroyed in an accident near Ajo, Arizona (Ajo airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 3 people were 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 27, 1985 · about 6:50 pm local time
- Place
- Ajo, Arizona · Ajo · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-236 · all PA-28-236s on the register
- Registration
- N8253C · registry record · serial 288311001
- 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
WHILE ATTEMPTING TO START THE ENGINE FOR A PLANNED AIR TAXI FLIGHT UNDER CONDITIONS INCLUDING AN OUTSIDE AIR TEMP OF 118 DEGS F, A FIRE ERUPTED IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. THE OCCUPANTS SAFETY EVACUATED THE ACFT & HAD TO WALK 1/4 OF A MILE TO OBTAIN ASSISTANCE. 15 MIN LATER FIRE TRUCKS FROM THE VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPT. ARRIVED ON SCENE & EXTINGUISHED THE FIRE. THE ACFT WAS VIRTUALLY COMSUMED BY THE FIRE, & THE FUEL FED FIRE'S POINT OF ORIGIN IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT WAS NOT ASCERTAINED.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,222 hours in all; 50 in this make and model; 167 in the last 90 days; 71 in the last 30 days; 6,763 as pilot in command; 2,900 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 641 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 20, 1985; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,610 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-J3A5D (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Destination: TUS Tucson AZ
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 118°F (48°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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 N8253C 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.