Cessna A188B accident near Wadley, Georgia, March 11, 1983
On March 11, 1983 at about 9:30 pm local time, a Cessna A188B, registered N8233G, was destroyed in an accident near Wadley, Georgia (Dirt Road airport). It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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
- March 11, 1983 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- Wadley, Georgia · Dirt Road · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A188B · all A188Bs on the register
- Registration
- N8233G · no longer on the register · serial 1881260OT
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT HAD BEEN USING A PAVED ROAD FOR A LANDING STRIP UNTIL SOMEONE COMPLAINED. HE THEN CHANGED TO A NORTH- SOUTH DIRT ROAD WITH TREES ON THE WEST SIDE AND UTILITY WIRES AND POLES ON THE RIGHT SIDE. WHILE LANDING WITH A LEFT CROSSWIND AT ABOUT 16 GUSTING 20 KTS, THE AIRCRAFT DRIFTED TO THE RIGHT AND THE RIGHT WING SLIPPED BETWEEN THE WIRES. THE PILOT'S EFFORTS TO TURN AWAY FROM THE UTILITY LINE RESULTED IN THE RIGHT WING CONTACTING THE TOP WIRE WHICH PREVENTED THE AIRCRAFT FROM TURNING LEFT. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE RIGHT WING HIT AN INSULATOR MOUNT AND THE AIRCRAFT CRASHED. THE PILOT WAS LANDING FOR HIS 27TH LOAD OF THE DAY.
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
- Flight time: 2,000 hours in all; 1,343 in this make and model; 6 in the last 90 days; 1,850 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,221 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, February 16, 1983; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,300 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 2,000 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 16 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility: 12 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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 N8233G 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.