Piper PA-28-161 accident near Concord, New Hampshire, August 4, 1982
On August 4, 1982 at about 8:10 am local time, a Piper PA-28-161, registered N81786, was destroyed in an accident near Concord, New Hampshire. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were killed. 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
- August 4, 1982 · about 8:10 am local time
- Place
- Concord, New Hampshire
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-161 · all PA-28-161s on the register
- Registration
- N81786 · no longer on the register · serial 28-8016216
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT WAS ADVISED DURING THE 0028 & 0203 WX BRIEFINGS THAT VFR FLT WAS NOT RECOMMENDED. AT 0304 THE PLT CALLED FSS TO ACTIVATE HIS FLT PLAN & WAS AGAIN ADVISED VFR FLT WAS NOT RECOMMENDED. AT 0403 THE FLT WAS GIVEN CONCORD WX & AT 0406WAS CLEARED INTO THE CONCORD CONTROL ZONE TO MAINTAIN SPECIAL VFR AT OR BELOW 3,000 FT. AT APPROXIMATELY 0410 THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH TREES ABOUT 4.5 MI NW OF THE ARPT. THE PLT WAS QUALIFIED TO FLY ONLY VFR AIR TAXI.
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; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,070 hours in all; 945 as pilot in command; 430 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 772 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D3G (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Coastal Air Services, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: GON Groton CT at 4:10 am
- Destination: CON Concord NH
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 142°F (61°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:28 am from CON, 5 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.