Piper PA-44-180T accident near Missing Acft, PO, February 25, 1987
On February 25, 1987 at about 2:16 am local time, a Piper PA-44-180T, registered N8307H, was destroyed in an accident near Missing Acft, PO. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
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
- February 25, 1987 · about 2:16 am local time
- Place
- Missing Acft, PO · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-44-180T · all PA-44-180Ts on the register
- Registration
- N8307H · no longer on the register · serial 448107032
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE INSTRUCTOR PLT (CFI) & THE SINGLE-ENG, PVT PLT (OWNER) WERE ON A FLT TO CONDUCT MULTI-ENG TRAINING FOR THE NEW OWNER. DRG THE FLT, THE CREW CONTACTED LOS ANGELES TRACON & REQUESTED A VOR APCH TO THE SANTA MONICA ARPT & SAID THEY WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO MAINT VFR. TRACON ASSIGNED AN ALT OF 3000' & STARTED PROVIDING VECTORS TO THE FLT. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, RADIO & RADAR CONTACT WITH THE ACFT WERE LOST AS IT WAS FLYING OVER OCEAN WATERS ABOUT 12 MI WEST OF LOS ANGELES. NEITHER THE ACFT NOR THE OCCUPANTS WERE FND. THE ACFT WAS PRESUMED TO HAVE CRASHED IN THE OCEAN & THE CREW WERE PRESUMED TO HAVE BEEN FATALLY INJURED. RAINSHOWERS & A THUNDERSTORM WERE RPRTD TO BE IN THE AREA.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 792 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming TO-360-E1A6D (piston); 0 hours total
- Not recorded
The flight
- Departed from: VNY Van Nuys CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: overcast; not recorded
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:50 pm from LAX, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
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.