Beech G18S incident near Huntsville, Alabama, November 16, 1982
On November 16, 1982 at about 12:45 pm local time, a Beech G18S, registered N5BA, suffered minor damage in an incident near Huntsville, Alabama. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this incident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 16, 1982 · about 12:45 pm local time
- Place
- Huntsville, Alabama
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech G18S · all G18Ss on the register
- Registration
- N5BA · registry record · serial BA 614
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE LEFT CARGO DOOR SEPARATED FROM THE ACFT. THE DOOR WAS A HAMILTON CARGO DOOR INSTALLED UNDER AN STC WHICH REQUIRED 3 HINGES ON TOP & 3 PINS ON BOTTOM WITH AN OVERCENTER LOCKING MECHANISM ON THE HANDLE FOR THE PINS. THIS DOOR HAD 2 HINGES INSTALLED. ONLY 2 PINS WERE FOUND OPERATIONAL & THERE WAS NO OPERABLE OVERCENTER LOCKING MECHANISM.
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: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,500 hours in all; 2,500 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 5,500 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 9,700 lb
- Seats: 10
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W R-985-AN14B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Louisville KY at 5:17 am
- Destination: Hayden CO
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 86°F (30°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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 N5BA 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.