Cessna 182Q accident near Cornelia, Georgia, November 20, 2002
On November 20, 2002 at about 2:52 am local time, a Cessna 182Q, registered N58GH, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cornelia, Georgia (Habersham County Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to follow IFR approach procedures and continue below the minimum descent altitude, which resulted in an inflight collision with trees, and the ground. A factor was the pilot's impairment from a prescription drug.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 20, 2002 · about 2:52 am local time
- Place
- Cornelia, Georgia · Habersham County Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182Q · all 182Qs on the register
- Registration
- N58GH · no longer on the register · serial 18265769
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight was cleared for a GPS 6 approach, and the wreckage was found a few hundred feet from the runway. Trees near the runway threshold were found broken 15 feet above the runway elevation. The published minimum descent altitude for the approach was 533 feet above the runway touchdown zone. Examination of the airframe, engine, vacuum pumps, and instruments revealed no evidence of malfunction. Forensic toxicology revealed 0.67 (ug/mL, ug/g) Tramadol was detected in the pilot's blood, and Tramadol was present in the urine. Tramadol is a prescription narcotic-like painkiller used for moderate to severe pain, and the pilot was taking the drug for pain following back surgery. A review of FAA airman medical records revealed no evidence the pilot reported the Tramadol usage to the FAA. Title 14 CFR Part 91.17 states, "(a) No person may act ... as a crewmember of a civil aircraft ... (3) While using any drug that affects the person's faculties in any way contrary to safety."
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,623 hours in all; 1,193 in this make and model; 15 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 1,534 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: October 27, 2002
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 317.6 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 8, 2002; 12 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,950 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-550-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TLH Tallahassee FL
- Destination: AJR Cornellia GA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 06, 3,750 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: at 0 knots
- Visibility: 0.2 statute miles
- Sky: vv at 100 ft
- Temperature: 43°F (6°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.26 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 am from GVL, 19 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.
Other NTSB records under N58GH the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.