Cessna A188B N4784Q

Summary

On 4 April 2005 at about 00:20 local time, a Cessna A188B registered N4784Q was involved in an accident near Palouse, Washington, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

4 April 2005 at 00:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Palouse, Washington, United States

Coordinates

46.2553, -117.0586

Aircraft

Cessna A188B

Registration

N4784Q

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

pALOUSE → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA05CA069

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain terrain clearance during the initial climb after takeoff. A tailwind, hilly terrain and inadequate airspeed were factors.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that this was the 30th load of the day dispensing fertilizer. During the takeoff roll on runway 29 with calm winds, the aircraft was loaded with about 1,300 pounds of Urea. The pilot reported that the tail came up normally and that he didn't notice any problems with the engine. The aircraft lifted off and remained in ground effect while going upslope. The pilot reported that the aircraft then began to settle, at which time he started dumping his load, but not enough before the aircraft impacted upsloping terrain in a three point attitude. The aircraft became airborne for a short distance before colliding with the top of the next hill. The pilot reported that after exiting the aircraft, he noticed a slight tail wind. The pilot reported no evidence of a mechanical failure or malfunction with the aircraft at the time of the accident sequence.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.