Cessna 182Q accident near Meridianville, Alabama, April 17, 1987
On April 17, 1987 at about 12:39 pm local time, a Cessna 182Q, registered N4798N, was substantially damaged in an accident near Meridianville, Alabama (Huntsville Airport North). 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
- April 17, 1987 · about 12:39 pm local time
- Place
- Meridianville, Alabama · Huntsville Airport North · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182Q · all 182Qs on the register
- Registration
- N4798N · no longer on the register · serial 18267376
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT COMPLETED THE VOR/DME-B APPCH TO THE ARPT AND CANCELLED HIS IFR FLT PLAN. THE PLT REPORTED OBSERVING THAT THE ACFT WAS TO THE RIGHT OF THE RWY WHILE ON FINAL APPCH TO RWY 36. HE THEN INITIATED A GO-AROUND, AND BEGAN A RIGHT TURN AFTER 'PASSING' A TREE HE OBSERVED TO THE RIGHT. WHILE TURNING, HE REALIZED THAT THE ACFT WAS HEADING TOWARD A UTILITY POLE, TRANSFORMER, AND WIRES; HE ATTEMPTED TO PULL UP, BUT THE ACFT STRUCK A UTILITY WIRE AND IMPACTED THE TERRAIN BEYOND.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,104 hours in all; 840 in this make and model; 21 in the last 90 days; 990 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,517 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection; 31 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-U (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Redstone Flying Club
The flight
- Departed from: HUA Huntsville AL at 12:20 pm
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 36, 3,765 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 1,300 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:23 pm from HSV, 17 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.