Cessna 188B N4983Q

Summary

On 29 September 2000 at about 15:40 local time, a Cessna 188B registered N4983Q was involved in an accident near Stanton, Texas, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

29 September 2000 at 15:40

Classification

Accident

Location

Stanton, Texas, United States

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Cessna 188B

Registration

N4983Q

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Big Spring → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW00LA270

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from guy wires and tower.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

While spraying herbicides to a cotton field, the agricultural aircraft was performing a maneuver known as 'trimming the field.' Six witnesses observed the airplane in various stages of the operation, three of whom saw the airplane strike a 180 foot tower and the guys wires that support the tower. After the in-flight collision, the airplane impacted the ground and exploded. Evidence at the site revealed that the airplane struck the guy wires and the tower at about 145 feet AGL. Witness marks on the tower and the guy wires, and the proximity of the wreckage to the tower all corroborated the eye-witnesses' statements. An autopsy did not reveal any pre-existing medical conditions that could have contributed to the accident. Toxicology testing was negative for carbon monoxide, cyanide, and ethanol. Acetaminophen (7.381 ug/ml, ug/g) was detected in the urine. The pilot had performed spraying in these fields in the past, and was aware of the tower.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.