Piper PA-32R-300 accident near Dewitt, Nebraska, December 17, 1982
On December 17, 1982 at about 2:20 am local time, a Piper PA-32R-300, registered N6855F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Dewitt, Nebraska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- December 17, 1982 · about 2:20 am local time
- Place
- Dewitt, Nebraska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32R-300 · all PA-32R-300s on the register
- Registration
- N6855F · no longer on the register · serial 32R7780039
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AS THE FLT APPROACHED DESTINATION THE ALTERNATOR BEGAN TO MALFUNCTION. PLT CONTINUED TO DESTINATION WHICH WAS IMC, AND AS THE GEAR WAS LOWERED DURING AN INSTRUMENT APPROACH THE NOSE GEAR INDICATED UNSAFE. THE APPROACH WAS DISCONTINUED AND THE PLT CLIMBED BACK TO VMC-ON-TOP. AS THE PLT WAS ATTEMPTING TO GET A SAFE INDICATION ON THE NOSE GEAR, COMPLETE ELECTRICAL FAILURE OCCURRED. HAVING NO COMMUNICATION OR NAVIGATIONAL CAPABILITY, THE PLT RETRACED HIS ROUTE BACK TO KNOWN VMC ABOUT 60 MI SW OF OMAHA. AN OFF-AIRPORT PRECAUTIONARY LANDING WAS MADE DUE TO LOW FUEL, AND THE LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED. THE ALTERNATOR FAILED DUE TO A SHORT FROM FIELD TO GROUND. THE BRUSHES AND PULLEY END BEARING WERE WORN, AND THE ALTERNATOR WAS OIL SOAKED.
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 single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,238 hours in all; 240 in this make and model; 165 in the last 90 days; 43 in the last 30 days; 1,234 as pilot in command; 15 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,357 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 55 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Heartland Enterprises, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: Dodge City KS at 5:30 pm
- Destination: Omaha NE
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 4 |
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.