Piper PA-31 accident near Cumberland, Maryland, March 5, 1984
On March 5, 1984 at about 4:07 pm local time, a Piper PA-31, registered N6629L, was destroyed in an accident near Cumberland, Maryland (Cumberland airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 3 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
- March 5, 1984 · about 4:07 pm local time
- Place
- Cumberland, Maryland · Cumberland · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-31 · all PA-31s on the register
- Registration
- N6629L · no longer on the register · serial 31-565
- 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
APPROX 16 MIN PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT THE PLT WAS CLEARED FOR THE LOCALIZER DME APPROACH. THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH THE MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN ON A HDG OF ABOUT 220 DEGREES AT APPROX 8.5 DME ON A BEARING OF 051 DEGREES FROM THE ARPT. AS INDICATED ON THE LOC/DME RWY 23 APPROACH PLATE, THE MINIMUM ALTITUDE BETWEEN THE OUTER MARKER, 6.6 DME, AND 10 DME WAS 3000 FEET. ELEVATION AT THE ACCIDENT SITE WAS 2000 FT; ARPT ELEVATION WAS 776 FT. POST CRASH FIRE CONSUMED MOST OF THE WRECKAGE BUT THE CABIN HEATER WAS NOT IN THE FIRE AREA. THE PILOT'S REPORTED CARBOXY HEMOGLOBIN (CO) WAS 20%. AUTOPSY REVEALED MULTIPLE EXTREME IMPACT INJURIES. PRODUCTS OF COMBUSTION WERE FOUND ON FRESH AIR SIDE OF CABIN HEATER/HEAT EXCHANGER. SOURCE OF COMBUSTION PRODUCTS WERE NOT DETERMINED.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,143 hours in all; 547 in this make and model; 218 in the last 90 days; 61 in the last 30 days; 1,844 as pilot in command; 820 on instruments
- Medical certificate: None (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,361 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, January 31, 1984; 22 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,500 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming TIO540-A2B (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Cumberland Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: BWI Baltimore MD
- Destination: CBE Cumberland MD
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 23, 5,050 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:00 pm from CBE
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.