Piper PA-34-200 accident near Plymouth, Massachusetts, August 31, 1999
On August 31, 1999 at about 11:22 pm local time, a Piper PA-34-200, registered N98FM, was destroyed in an accident near Plymouth, Massachusetts (Plymouth Municipal Arpt airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight instructor's inadequate remedial action, and the pilot-under-instruction's panic and subsequent interference with the flight controls.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 31, 1999 · about 11:22 pm local time
- Place
- Plymouth, Massachusetts · Plymouth Municipal Arpt
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-34-200 · all PA-34-200s on the register
- Registration
- N98FM · no longer on the register · serial 34-7350016
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot-under-instruction (PUI) was in the left seat, and the flight instructor was in the right seat for the multi-engine instructional flight. The PUI was performing a simulated engine-out approach, with the right engine set at zero thrust. On short final, the airplane's airspeed began to bleed off. The instructor told the PUI to add power, which he did, but because of insufficient rudder input, the airplane drifted to the right. The instructor announced he was taking control of the airplane, then took control of it, and the PUI relinquished control. Due to the low altitude, and with the airplane stabilized, the instructor decided to land the airplane in the grass next to the runway. However, the PUI grabbed the yoke, pulled back on it, and started screaming. Both pilots struggled for control, as the airplane went below minimum control airspeed, then struck the ground in a high right-angle of bank. Prior to the accident flight, the instructor had called an examiner to cancel the PUI's upcoming check ride. At that time, the instructor had characterized the PUI, when flying, as unpredictable, and someone who would 'do unusual things on his own.'
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 multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 536 hours in all; 84 in this make and model; 102 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 177 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 23, 1999
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: OWD Norwood MA at 9:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 6, 4,350 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:52 pm from PYM
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
Other NTSB records under N98FM 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.