Cessna A188B accident near Sargent, Nebraska, June 8, 2007
On June 8, 2007 at about 11:30 pm local time, a Cessna A188B, registered N9493G, was destroyed in an accident near Sargent, Nebraska. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain adequate visual lookout and clearance from the hillside. Factors contributing to the accident include the pilot's diverted attention, the hillside, and the glare from the setting sun.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 8, 2007 · about 11:30 pm local time
- Place
- Sargent, Nebraska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A188B · all A188Bs on the register
- Registration
- N9493G · no longer on the register · serial 18801500
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The agricultural airplane was destroyed during a post-impact ground fire following an in-flight collision with terrain. The pilot reported that the airplane impacted a hillside while he was circling around a pasture that was to be sprayed. The pilot was reportedly trying to locate a map in the cockpit when the airplane struck the hillside. The airplane was flying into the setting sun when the ground impact occurred.
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
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine
- Flight time: 10,000 hours in all; 5,000 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 10,000 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: May 1, 2007
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,100 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 1, 2007
- Maximum gross weight: 3,300 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Air Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: PVT Comstock NE at 11:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 41°F (5°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
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.