Piper PA-32-260 accident near Mound City, Missouri, March 6, 1988
On March 6, 1988 at about 11:00 am local time, a Piper PA-32-260, registered N7703J, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mound City, Missouri. 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
- March 6, 1988 · about 11:00 am local time
- Place
- Mound City, Missouri · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-260 · all PA-32-260s on the register
- Registration
- N7703J · no longer on the register · serial 32-1070
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PIC, AFTER AN EARLIER LNDG AT TARKIO, MISSOURI AND AN UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPT TO REACH HIS FISHING PARTNER, FLEW HIS ACFT TO AND LANDED AT ST. JOSEPH ROSECRANS ARPT. AFTER CONTACTING HIS FRIEND, AND CATCHING A FEW HOURS OF SLEEP, THE PIC MADE AN EARLY MORNING DEPARTURE FOR TARKIO, LOCATED NORTHWEST OF ST. JOSEPH. THE PIC RPTD FOG FORMING DURING THE FLT AND IDENTIFICATION OF THE TARKIO ARPT WAS NOT MADE. AFTER 2 ATTEMPTS TO LOCATE THE ARPT THE PIC MODIFIED HIS COURSE TO LAND AT ANOTHER ARPT HE HAD SPOTTED EARLIER. THE PIC RPTD THAT FOG HAD NOW OBSCURED THAT ARPT AND HE TURNED AND HEADED SOUTHWEST. AS A LAST RESORT THE PIC PLANNED TO ATTEMPT A LNDG ON THE INTERSTATE HWY NEAR MOUND CITY. THE PIC RPTD EXHAUSTING HIS FUEL SUPPLY BEFORE REACHING THE INTERSTATE AND A FORCED LNDG WAS EXECUTED TO A FIELD NORTHWEST OF MOUND CITY, MISSOURI. THE PIC STATED HE HAD KNOWLEDGE OF THE POTENTIAL OF ENCOUNTERING DETERIORATING WX BUT PRESSED ON KNOWING HIS DEST WAS ONLY 20 MINUTES AWAY.
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: 4,000 hours in all; 2,500 in this make and model; 29 in the last 90 days; 4,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,000 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-E4B5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: STJ St. Joseph MO at 11:00 am
- Destination: K57 Tarkio MO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, bright
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 5:00 am
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.
Other NTSB records under N7703J 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.