Piper AEROSTAR 601P accident near Limerick, Pennsylvania, March 18, 1994
On March 18, 1994 at about 4:26 pm local time, a Piper AEROSTAR 601P, registered N36444, was destroyed in an accident near Limerick, Pennsylvania (Pottstown-Limerick airport). It was an executive or corporate flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed and 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT'S FAILURE TO ENSURE THAT ICE WAS PROPERLY REMOVED FROM THE AIRPLANE BEFORE FLIGHT, POSSIBLY DUE TO IMPAIRMENT OF JUDGMENT CAUSED BY A PRESCRIPTION DRUG (VALIUM) THAT WAS NOT APPROVED FOR USE WHILE FLYING. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE PILOT'S FAILURE TO PROPERLY REPORT HIS MEDICAL HISTORY ON HIS FAA MEDICAL APPLICATION, AND FAILURE OF THE DESIGNATED MEDICAL EXAMINER TO REPORT THE PILOT'S KNOWN MEDICAL HISTORY.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 18, 1994 · about 4:26 pm local time
- Place
- Limerick, Pennsylvania · Pottstown-Limerick · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper AEROSTAR 601P AEROSTAR 6 · all AEROSTAR 601Ps on the register
- Registration
- N36444 · registry record · serial P08438163444
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Executive or corporate flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT 0815 EDT, N36444 LANDED WITH LIGHT SNOW FALLING & THE TEMPERATURE ABOVE FREEZING. SNOW CONTINUED FALLING & THE TEMPERATURE DROPPED BELOW FREEZING. AT ABOUT 1100, THE PILOT FILED AN IFR FLIGHT PLAN & HAD A LINEMAN BRUSH SNOW FROM THE WINGS. THE LINEMAN NOTED THAT PATCHES OF ICE REMAINED ON THE LEFT WING, BUT THE PILOT DECLINED TO DEICE THE PLANE. (AT AN AIRPORT 3 MILES AWAY, ANOTHER FLIGHT WAS DELAYED DUE TO ICE THAT HAD FORMED BELOW A SNOW COVER ON A PLANE THAT SAT OUTSIDE FROM 0945 TO 1100.) THE SURVIVING PASSENGER SAID THAT AFTER TAKEOFF, N36444 LOST LIFT & YAWED LEFT. IT APPEARED TO RECOVER, THEN VIBRATED, YAWED, BANKED LEFT, DESCENDED, & IMPACTED THE GROUND. AFTER THE ACCIDENT, THE ENGINES WERE TEST RUN WITH NO NOTABLE DEFICIENCIES. THERE WAS EVIDENCE THE PILOT WAS TAKING PRESCRIPTION MEDICATION. TESTS OF HIS BLOOD SHOWED 0.157 UG/ML OF DIAZEPAM & 0.134 UG/ML OF NORDIAZEPAM. TESTS OF HIS URINE SHOWED 0.152 UG/ML OF NORDIAZEPAM & 0.167 UG/ML OF OXAZEPAM. ON 3/2/90, THE PILOT HAD SURGERY FOR A TUMOR OF (OR NEAR) THE LEFT OPTIC NERVE. IN HIS LAST FAA MEDICAL APPLICATION, HE DENIED THAT HE HAD MEDICAL TREATMENT IN THE PREVIOUS 5 YEARS & DID NOT REPORT USE OF ANY MEDICATIONS. THE AVIATION MEDICAL EXAMINER HAD PRESCRIBED RESERPINE (FOR HYPERTENSION) & WAS AWARE OF THE SURGERY, BUT THIS WAS NOT REPORTED IN THE PILOT'S FAA MEDICAL RECORD.
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: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 19,950 hours in all; 7,500 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 19,150 as pilot in command; 1,060 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,356 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 28, 1993; 257 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,000 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-S1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PTW Pottstown PA at 4:20 pm
- Destination: SBY Salisbury MD
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 28, 3,371 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 0.5 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:00 pm from NXX, 20 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 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.