Cessna 404 accident near Oshkosh, Wisconsin, February 19, 1982
On February 19, 1982 at about 7:00 pm local time, a Cessna 404, registered N6761H, was substantially damaged in an accident near Oshkosh, Wisconsin (Wittman airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 7 people were on board or involved. 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
- February 19, 1982 · about 7:00 pm local time
- Place
- Oshkosh, Wisconsin · Wittman
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 7 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 404 · all 404s on the register
- Registration
- N6761H · no longer on the register · serial 404-0670
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE RIGHT MAIN GEAR COLLAPSED ON LANDING. INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE REAR TRUNNION PIVOT PIN, P/N5741112-1, HAD MOVED AFT & OUT OF THE TRUNNION. THE PIN HAD ABOUT 1 INCH OF WHITE PAINT ON THE END OF THE PIN THAT EXTENDED INTO THE FLAP TRACK AREA. THE EXTENSION OF THE REAR PIVOT PIN ON THE LEFT GEAR WAS MEASURED AT 1/2 INCH OF PAINTED PIN EXTENDING INTO THE FLAP TRACK AREA. THE PIVOT PIN IS HELD IN THE TRUNNION WITH A ROLL PIN. THE AFT PIN STILL HAD A SECTION OF THE ROLL PIN IN IT & THE FAILURE MODE WAS A SHEAR. THE OTHER TWO SMALL PIECES OF THE ROLL PIN WERE STILL IN THE TRUNNION. THE FORWARD PIVOT PIN SHOWED A WEAR PATTERN THAT THE SHIMS HAD BEEN RIDING ABOUT 2/10 INCH FURTHER FROM THE PIVOT PIN HOLE THAN ON THE REAR PIN. ADDITIONALLY, THE REAR PIN HAD GROOVED WEAR MARKS ALL THE WAY TO THE END OF THE PIVOT PIN FROM THE POINT OF ORIGINAL WEAR PATTERN.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 9,373 hours in all; 99 in this make and model; 72 in the last 90 days; 9,110 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 282 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 82 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,400 lb
- Seats: 10
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental GTSIO-520-M (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Priester Aviation Service
The flight
- Departed from: ATW Appleton WI at 12:42 pm
- Destination: 3GV Grain Valley MO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 36, 6,700 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 4 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 800 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:06 pm from OSH
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 6 |
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.