Piper PA-24-400 accident near Salem, Missouri, March 27, 1983
On March 27, 1983 at about 1:00 am local time, a Piper PA-24-400, registered N8611P, was destroyed in an accident near Salem, Missouri. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was 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
- March 27, 1983 · about 1:00 am local time
- Place
- Salem, Missouri · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-24-400 · all PA-24-400s on the register
- Registration
- N8611P · no longer on the register · serial 26-139
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE STUDENT PLT DEPARTED DEXTER, MO AT APRX DUSK ON A VFR, NO-FLT-PLAN FLT TO HOUSTON, MO. TIME REQUIRED FOR THE FLT WOULD HAVE BEEN APRX 30 MIN (ESTIMATED). AT 1900 CST, THE BUNKER, MO CITY MARSHAL REPORTED THAT AN ACFT FLEW OVER BUNKER SO LOW THAT HE THOUGHT IT WOULD HIT THE WATER TOWER. APRX 1/2 HR LATER, ANOTHER PERSON REPORTED A LOW FLYING PLANE OVER HIGHWAY 72 NEAR BUNKER. NEAR THE SAME TIME, CAMPERS BETWEEN BUNKER & SALEM, MO SAW A LOW FLYING PLANE CIRCLE AT ABOUT TREE TOP LEVEL, THEN DEPART TO THE NORTHWEST. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, THEY HEARD A POPPING SOUND & THE THE ENG NOISE QUIT ABRUPTLY. THE ACFT WAS FOUND THE NEXT DAY WHERE IT HAD IMPACTED WITH TREES APRX 30 FT AGL, THEN CAME TO REST AT THE BASES OF 2 LARGE TREES. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THERE WERE AREAS OF IMC ALONG THE ROUTES & THE PLT HAD BEEN CAUTIONED THAT VFR FLT WAS NOT RECOMMENDED. THE SEARCH FOR THE ACFT HAD BEEN DELAYED DUE TO DARKNESS & THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY. AN EXAM OF THE WRECKAGE REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF A PREIMPACT, MECHANICAL FAILURE.
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: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 500 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (invalid medical for flight)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,137 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 25, 1982; 52 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-720-A1B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: M43 Dexter MO
- Destination: M48 Houston MO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 160° at 18 knots, gusting 25
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Observation at 1:55 am from VIH, 60 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.