Piper PA-34-220T accident near Battleground, Washington, July 15, 1993
On July 15, 1993 at about 9:46 pm local time, a Piper PA-34-220T, registered N8472C, was destroyed in an accident near Battleground, Washington. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT IN COMMAND'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN ADEQUATE ALTITUDE DURING HIS MANEUVER.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 15, 1993 · about 9:46 pm local time
- Place
- Battleground, Washington · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-34-220T · all PA-34-220Ts on the register
- Registration
- N8472C · no longer on the register · serial 34-8233043
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRPLANE DEPARTED PORTLAND INTNL ARPT ON A MAINTENANCE CHECK FLT, CLIMBED TO 1900 FT MSL & PROCEDED TO OVERFLY THE PILOT'S RESIDENCE. SUCH OVERFLIGHTS WERE NOT UNCOMMON ACCORDING TO THE PILOT'S WIFE. RADAR DATA SHOWED THE ACFT FLYING A LEFT 360 DEG CIRCLE AT 1900 FT (APPROX 1000 FT ABOVE GND) BEFORE RADAR CONTACT WAS LOST. WITNESES CONFIRMED THE CIRCULAR ORBIT. EARLY INTO THE 2ND ORBIT THEY OBSERVED THE ACFT EXECUTE A STEEP LEFT TURN DURING WHICH THE NOSE DROPPED AND THE ACFT BEGAN A DESCENT, STRIKING A TREE AT A POINT APPROX 110 FT ABOVE THE GROUND IMPACT SITE & SEVERING THE OUTBOARD LEFT WING SECTION. THE ACFT THEN DESCENDED TO THE GND WHILE ROLLING LEFT ABOUT ITS LONGITUDINAL AXIS. PROP SLASH MARKS ASSOCIATED WITH BOTH ENGINES INDICATED APPROXIMATELY 2200 & 2900 RPM FOR THE LEFT & RGT ENGINES RESPECTIVELY UPON GND IMPACT. POST CRASH EXAM REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF ANY CONTROL MALFUNCTION WITHIN THE ACFT.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,991 hours in all; 2 in this make and model; 67 in the last 90 days; 35 in the last 30 days; 6,533 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,555 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 16, 1993; 14 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,750 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-360-KB (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Flightcraft INC.
The flight
- Departed from: PDX Portland OR at 9:35 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 020° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,000 ft; scat at 2,800 ft
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:50 pm from PDX, 14 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.