Cessna U206F accident near Garden Prairie, Illinois, September 18, 1983
On September 18, 1983 at about 2:30 pm local time, a Cessna U206F, registered N8449Q, was substantially damaged in an accident near Garden Prairie, Illinois. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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
- September 18, 1983 · about 2:30 pm local time
- Place
- Garden Prairie, Illinois · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna U206F · all U206Fs on the register
- Registration
- N8449Q · no longer on the register · serial U20603307
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE EN ROUTE, THE FUEL PRESSURE DROPPED, AND SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ENG LOST POWER COMPLETELY. DURING A LANDING IN A CORN FIELD, THE ACFT WAS DAMAGED. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE FUEL LINE HAD SEPARATED AT THE FLOW DIVIDER. REPORTEDLY, THE ENG HAD BEEN RECENTLY INSTALLED BY THE PILOT/MECHANIC & THE FUEL LINE HAD NOT BEEN PROPERLY TORQUED.
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: 5,000 hours in all; 200 in this make and model; 240 in the last 90 days; 4,850 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,180 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 12, 1983; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 1C5 Plainfield IL at 1:45 pm
- Destination: Madison WI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 225° at 20 knots, gusting 30
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 10,000 ft; not recorded at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°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.
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.