Piper PA-28-180 accident near Lehighton, Pennsylvania, December 21, 1986
On December 21, 1986 at about 5:20 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-180, registered N54482, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lehighton, Pennsylvania (Jake Arner Memorial airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were 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
- December 21, 1986 · about 5:20 pm local time
- Place
- Lehighton, Pennsylvania · Jake Arner Memorial · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-180 · all PA-28-180s on the register
- Registration
- N54482 · no longer on the register · serial 28-7405058
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
STUDENT PILOT WITH A CERTIFIED FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR WHILE ON THE LANDING ROLL ENCOUNTERED A CROSSWIND. DIRECTIONAL CONTROL WAS LOST THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED THE RUNWAY CAUSING SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE DUE COMING TO FINAL REST IN A DITCH.
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 757 hours in all; 280 in this make and model; 103 in the last 90 days; 497 as pilot in command; 220 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,566 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 17, 1986; 67 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,450 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A4A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 22N Lehihgton PA at 4:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 8, 3,000 ft by 50 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 15 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,500 ft; scat at 4,500 ft
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.