Piper PA-34-200T accident near Albion, Idaho, November 20, 1990
On November 20, 1990 at about 5:10 pm local time, a Piper PA-34-200T, registered N4325X, was destroyed in an accident near Albion, Idaho. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT-IN-COMMAND'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN CONTROL OF THE AIRPLANE IN INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS. FACTORS WHICH CONTRIBUTED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE THE PILOT'S APPREHENSION OF FLYING IN THE FORECASTED WEATHER, AND THE ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS ENCOUNTERED DURING THE FLIGHT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 20, 1990 · about 5:10 pm local time
- Place
- Albion, Idaho · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-34-200T · all PA-34-200Ts on the register
- Registration
- N4325X · no longer on the register · serial 34-7670025
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING A WX BRIEFING THE PILOT WAS BRIEFED THAT A COLD FRONT WX SYSTEM WAS MOVING THROUGH THE ROUTE OF FLIGHT, WITH MODERATE ICING IN CLOUDS TO 16000 FT. THE PILOT HAD TO RETURN TO THE RAMP AFTER TAXIING TO TAKEOFF DUE TO A DEAD BATTERY. AS THE BATTERY WAS BEING RECHARGED, THE PILOT REPORTEDLY SEEMED APPREHENSIVE ABOUT THE WX CONDITIONS AND TOLD THE MECHANIC TO FEEL FREE TO WRITE UP ANY DISCREPANCY THAT WOULD CANCEL THE FLIGHT. THE PILOT ALSO STATED HE DIDN'T LIKE FLYING IN THE KIND OF WEATHER THAT WAS IN THE AREA. ABOUT 50 MINUTES AFTER DEPARTURE THAT PILOT RADIOED THAT HE WAS IN SERIOUS TROUBLE. NO FURTHER COMMUNICATIONS WERE RECEIVED. THE WRECKAGE WAS LOCATED IN AN AREA OF STEEP MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN THAT RISES TO OVER 9000 FT MSL. EVIDENCE SHOWED THAT THE WINGS AND STABILATORS SEPARATED PRIOR TO GROUND IMPACT. LEADING EDGE SURFACES OF THE AIRPLANE EXIBITED PITTING AND ABRASION OF PAINT, WITH AREAS OF PAINT STRIPPED DOWN TO BARE METAL. BLIZZARD WEATHER CONDITIONS EXISTED AT THE TIME.
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; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,339 hours in all; 37 in this make and model; 179 in the last 90 days; 41 in the last 30 days; 1,052 as pilot in command; 162 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,829 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 26, 1990; 41 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSI0-360-EB1B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SLC Salt Lake City UT at 4:18 pm
- Destination: TWF Twin Falls ID
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 18 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:45 pm from BYI, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.