Cessna 182 accident near Phenix City, Alabama, December 13, 1982
On December 13, 1982 at about 4:15 pm local time, a Cessna 182, registered N52742, was substantially damaged in an accident near Phenix City, Alabama (Phenix City airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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 accident. 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
- December 13, 1982 · about 4:15 pm local time
- Place
- Phenix City, Alabama · Phenix City · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182 · all 182s on the register
- Registration
- N52742 · no longer on the register · serial 182-62812
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AIRCRAFT HAD POWER LOSS DURING CRUISE AND DURING THE OFF AIRPORT LANDING A SOFT SPOT WAS HIT AND AIRCRAFT NOSED OVER. CONTAMINATES WERE FOUND IN FUEL. TANK CAPS DID NOT SEAL PROPERLY. VISUAL INSPECTION OF THE FUEL CELL BLADDER DISCLOSED PERMANENT 1/2 TO 3/4 INCH RIDGES THROUGHOUT THE BOTTOM SURFACE OF BOTH LEFT & RIGHT BLADDERS.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 562 hours in all; 337 in this make and model; 9 in the last 90 days; 363 as pilot in command; 198 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,615 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 80 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-R (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: C Tallahassee FL at 12:30 pm
- Destination: C Rockwood TN
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 104°F (40°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.
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.