Piper PA-28-161 accident near Bonne Terre, Missouri, November 5, 1987
On November 5, 1987 at about 10:20 am local time, a Piper PA-28-161, registered N8303Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Bonne Terre, Missouri (Bonne Terre airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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
- November 5, 1987 · about 10:20 am local time
- Place
- Bonne Terre, Missouri · Bonne Terre · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-161 · all PA-28-161s on the register
- Registration
- N8303Y · no longer on the register · serial 288116095
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT RPRTD THE ENG LOST PWR FM FUEL EXHAUSTION AS HE WAS CRUISING AT NGT ON A X-COUNTRY FLT AT 6500' MSL. HE DECLAREDAN EMERG WITH ST LOUIS APCH & REQD VECTORS TO THE NEAREST ARPT. THE CONTROLLER (CTLR) PROVIDED VECTORS TO THE BONNE TERRE ARPT WHICH WAS ABOUT 7 MI AWAY, BUT IT HAD NEITHER RWY LGTS NOR A ROTATING BEACON. THE PLT WAS UNABLE TO LOCATE THE ARPT & ELECTED TO MAKE A NGT LNDG ON A ROADWAY. AS HE WAS LNDG, THERE WAS A LEFT CURVE IN THE ROADWAY. WHILE LNDG IN A LEFT BANK OVER THE CURVED ROAD, THE LEFT WING CONTACTED THE GND & THE ACFT GND LOOPED & WAS DAMAGED. THE ACDNT OCCURRED ABOUT 1 MI FM THE UNLIGHTED ARPT. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THERE WAS A LIGHTED ARPT ABOUT THE SAME DISTANCE FM WHERE THE ENG LOST POWER. THE PLT STATED THAT DRG A PREFLT, HE NOTED THE FUEL WAS AT/NEAR THE BOTTOM OF THE SLEEVES (TABS). HE THOUGHT THE TANKS WERE INSIDE THE WING SKIN & THAT THE TABS REPRESENTED A FULL FUEL LVL, WHEN ACTUALLY THE FUEL TANKS WERE ABOUT 1-1/2 INCH BELOW THE FULL LVL. ALSO, HE SAID HE ENCOUNTERED UNEXPECTED HEADWINDS DRG THE FLT.
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: 152 hours in all; 109 in this make and model; 16 in the last 90 days; 115 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,531 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 18, 1987; 96 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,325 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-DG3 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Professional Aeronautics INC.
The flight
- Departed from: 08A Wetumpka AL
- Destination: SUS St. Louis MO
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 32, 2,800 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, bright
- Wind: from 320° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:15 am from SUS, 45 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.