Piper PA-28R accident near Fort Smith, Montana, January 6, 1997
On January 6, 1997 at about 2:30 am local time, a Piper PA-28R, registered N3347Q, was destroyed in an accident near Fort Smith, Montana. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from terrain. Factors include the pilot inadvertently becoming lost/disoriented, the dark night (minimum ambient light), and mountainous/hilly terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 6, 1997 · about 2:30 am local time
- Place
- Fort Smith, Montana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28R · all PA-28Rs on the register
- Registration
- N3347Q · no longer on the register · serial 28R-7703104
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Although the aircraft initially tracked within the lateral boundaries of a Victor airway during the dark night VFR flight from Billings, Montana, to Gillette, Wyoming, the pilot later veered off course and entered mountainous/hilly terrain. While in cruise flight, the aircraft impacted densely forested rising terrain at 7,800 feet MSL in a near-wings-level attitude.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,000 hours in all; 50 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,452 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 14, 1996; 57 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,750 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-360-FB1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BIL Billings MT at 2:06 am
- Destination: GCC Gillette WY
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 10,000 ft; scat at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: -4°F (-20°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.