Beech H18 accident near Cartersville, Georgia, February 12, 1985
On February 12, 1985 at about 10:10 am local time, a Beech H18, registered N18AW, was destroyed in an accident near Cartersville, Georgia (Cartersville-Bartow CO airport). It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 12, 1985 · about 10:10 am local time
- Place
- Cartersville, Georgia · Cartersville-Bartow CO · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech H18 · all H18s on the register
- Registration
- N18AW · registry record · serial BA-644
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE FLT HAD NOT YET BEEN SCHEDULED WHEN THE PLT RETIRED FOR THE EVENING AT 2230 TO 2300 EST. AT 0230, HE WAS AWOKEN & NOTIFIED TO MAKE A NGT CARGO FLT. THE OWNER OBTAINED A WX BRIEFING & FILED A FLT PLAN, THEN BRIEFED THE PLT LATER. THE PLT ARRIVED AT THE ARPT AT 0430. HE PREFLIGHTED THE ACFT WHILE THE OWNER UPDATED THE WX BRIEFING. THE ACFT WAS CLEARED AS FILED WITH A CLEARANCE VOID TIME OF 0500; THE CLEARANCE WAS RADIOED TO THE PLT BY UNICOM. DURING TAKEOFF,AT 0510, THE ACFT WAS OBSERVED CLIMBING NORTHBOUND TO APRX 800' AGL IN MODERATE SNOWFALL WITH THE LANDING LGT ON. A SHORT TIME LATER, THE ACFT CRASHED APRX 1 MI NE OF THE ARPT WHILE IN A STEEP NOSE DOWN, RGT WING LOW ATTITUDE. NO PRE- IMPACT PART FAILURE/MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND. REPORTEDLY, WHEN THE PLT 1ST HIRED ON, HE EXAGGERATED HIS FLT EXPERIENCE; HE HAD PROBLEMS WITH INSTRUMENT FLYING & WAS NOT SCHEDULED FOR FLTS IN MARGINAL WX; & HE WAS GIVEN EXTRA HELP. AT THE TIME OF THE ACDNT, SNW WAS FALLING, MIXED ICING WAS FORCAST IN CLDS & THERE WAS A SIGMET FOR MOD TO SVR TURBC BELOW 8000'.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,313 hours in all; 183 in this make and model; 119 in the last 90 days; 29 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,468 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 15, 1985; 8 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 9,900 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W R-985-14B (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Destination: ATL Atlanta GA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 36, 4,000 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 270° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 4 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 25°F (-4°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 N18AW the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ATL85FA097.