Cessna 195A accident near Tupelo, Mississippi, May 13, 1999
On May 13, 1999 at about 10:50 pm local time, a Cessna 195A, registered N4478C, was substantially damaged in an accident near Tupelo, Mississippi (Tupelo C.D. Lemons 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 pilot's failure to maintain directional control which resulted in an inadvertent ground loop/swerve and subsequent nose over.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 13, 1999 · about 10:50 pm local time
- Place
- Tupelo, Mississippi · Tupelo C.D. Lemons
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 195A · all 195As on the register
- Registration
- N4478C · no longer on the register · serial 16062
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot stated that he was conducting instrument training in the aircraft that evening with a safety pilot. During the landing roll, he lost directional control , the airplane ground looped and then nosed over. The pilot did not report any mechanical problems with the airplane.
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, military
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 14,457 hours in all; 20 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 36 in the last 30 days; 13,597 as pilot in command; 2,646 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,450 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 7, 1998; 25 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Jacobs R755B2 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TUP at 10:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 6,500 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 am from TUP
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.
Other NTSB records under N4478C 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.