Piper PA-38 accident near Port Townsend, Washington, October 26, 1986
On October 26, 1986 at about 2:30 am local time, a Piper PA-38, registered N2565P, was destroyed in an accident near Port Townsend, Washington. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 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
- October 26, 1986 · about 2:30 am local time
- Place
- Port Townsend, Washington · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-38 · all PA-38s on the register
- Registration
- N2565P · no longer on the register · serial 79A1040
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT HAD FLOWN THIS ACFT OVER THE SAME ROUTE MANY TIMES. WHILE EN ROUTE, THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH TALL TREES ON RISING TERRAIN ABOUT 3 MILES SOUTH OF A DIRECT COURSE TO THE DESTINATION. THE WX IN THE VICINITY WAS CHARACTERIZED BY LOW CLOUDS, FOG & HAZE. APRX 23 MILES WEST, THE PORT ANGELES WX AT 1920 PDT WAS, IN PART: 1100 THIN BROKEN, SKY CONDITION OBSCURED ABOVE 1100 FT, VISIBILITY 3 MI WITH FOG AND HAZE, WIND CALM. THE ELEVATION OF THE CRASH SITE WAS ABOUT 1300 FT;THE ELEVATION AT PORT ANGELES WAS 288 FT. THIS PARTICULAR FOOTHILL WAS KNOWN TO BE THE SITE OF SEVERAL PRIOR MISHAPS.
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: 661 hours in all; 630 in this make and model; 3 in the last 90 days; 608 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 562 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 24, 1986; 39 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PAE Everett WA at 2:00 am
- Destination: CLM Port Angeles WA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:20 pm from CLM, 23 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.