Cessna 150M accident near Parsons, West Virginia, June 23, 1984
On June 23, 1984 at about 2:30 am local time, a Cessna 150M, registered N704SK, was destroyed in an accident near Parsons, West Virginia. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- June 23, 1984 · about 2:30 am local time
- Place
- Parsons, West Virginia · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150M · all 150Ms on the register
- Registration
- N704SK · no longer on the register · serial 15078836
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH A TREE AND CRASHED AFTER BECOMING LOST IN IMC WEATHER DURING A NIGHT X-COUNTRY. THE PLT HAD DESCENDED AFTER SEEING LIGHTS BELOW HIM. HE CIRCLED THE TOWN AND MADE A TURN TO APPROACH A ROAD FOR LANDING ON WHICH HE SAID THE POLICE HAD PLACED LIGHTS FOR HIM. DURING THE TURN THE ACFT HIT A TREE AND CRASHED.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 110 hours in all; 93 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 66 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,512 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 24, 1984; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FRR Front Royal VA
- Destination: W67 Buckhannon WV
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; scat at 1,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°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.
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.