SEA89LA049

1989-02-15 · BEAVER MARSH, Oregon, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport 2S2

Aircraft involved

N95286 Piper PA28-140 None

Probable cause & findings

AN LOSS OF ENGINE POWER DUE TO A FAILED EXHAUST VALVE. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE SNOW COVERED TERRAIN ON WHICH A PRECAUTIONARY LANDING WAS MADE.

Factual narrative

DURING CRUISE FLT, THE ENG MISFIRED AND BEGAN OPERATING ON 3 CYLINDERS. DUE TO ROUGH TERRAIN BTW HIMSELF AND A KNOWN SUITABLE AIRPORT, THE PLT ELECTED TO MAKE A PRECAUTIONARY LANDING AT A SMALL SNOW-COVERED AIRSTRIP. THE ACFT NOSED OVER ON LANDING IN 4 FT OF SNOW. INSPECTION OF THE ENGINE REVEALED THE #3 CYLINDER EXHAUST VALVE HAD FAILED. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1989_SEA89LA049.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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