Piper PA28RT-201T accident near Gov'T Camp, Oregon, June 8, 1983
On June 8, 1983 at about 2:59 am local time, a Piper PA28RT-201T, registered N8402P, was destroyed in an accident near Gov'T Camp, Oregon. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 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
- June 8, 1983 · about 2:59 am local time
- Place
- Gov'T Camp, Oregon · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA28RT-201T PA28RT-201 · all PA28RT-201Ts on the register
- Registration
- N8402P · no longer on the register · serial 28R-8131159
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WX CONDITIONS ALONG THE FLT ROUTE INDICATED CEILINGS OF 25,000 FT & UNRESTRICTED VISIBILITY EXCEPT FOR THE AREA SOUTH & WEST OF MOUNT HOOD. MOUNT HOOD, ELEVATION 11,239 FT MSL, ON THE SW SIDE OF GOVERNMENT CAMP & CLEAR LAKE (ACCIDENT SITE),WAS COVERED BY CLOUDS. ACCORDING TO WITNESSES, A CLASSIC TOWERING CUMULONIMBUS EXISTED OVER MOUNT HOOD. AT CLEAR LAKE, ABOUT 15 MI SOUTH OF MOUNT HOOD, IT WAS RAINING WITH HAIL & LIGHTNING, WITH A CEILING ESTIMATED AT ABOUT 300 FT WITNESSES AT CLEAR LAKE REPORTED THE STORM WAS IN PROGRESS FOR SOME TIME BEFORE THE ACFT 'FELL OUT OF THE CLOUDS' INTO THE LAKE. MOST OF THE RECOVERED WRECKAGE WAS FOUND IN CLEAR LAKE BY SCUBA DIVERS IN AN AREA 3600 FT BY 800 FT. WRECKAGE DISTRIBUTION INDICATED GENERAL DISINTEGRATION INFLIGHT PRIOR TO IMPACT.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 167 hours in all; 84 in this make and model; 167 in the last 90 days; 61 in the last 30 days; 108 as pilot in command; 11 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 720 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 2, 1983; 15 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,900 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-360-FB (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SEA Seattle WA at 11:41 pm
- Destination: SEA Jackson CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 20 knots, gusting 40
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 300 ft; not recorded at 300 ft
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.