Cessna 205 accident near Oak Brook, Illinois, July 8, 1984
On July 8, 1984 at about 3:30 pm local time, a Cessna 205, registered N8377Z, was destroyed in an accident near Oak Brook, Illinois (Midway airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt. 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
- July 8, 1984 · about 3:30 pm local time
- Place
- Oak Brook, Illinois · Midway · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 205
- Registration
- N8377Z · no longer on the register · serial 205-0377
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
PILOT AND PASSENGERS HERE CIRCLING OVER A GOLF TOURNANENT TAKING PHOTOGRAPHS WHEN THE ENGINE QUIT. THE PILOT MADE AN EMERGENCY LANDING ON AN ADJACENT GOLF COURSE AND THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK A TREE DURING THE ROLLOUT. POST ACCIDENT EXAM OF THE ENG REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF A MECHANICAL OR FAILURE. THE FUEL BOOST PUMP WAS FOUND TO BE IN THE HIGH POSITION. THE ACFT OWNER'S MANUAL STATES THAT THE ELECTRIC FUEL PUMP SHOULD NOT BE SWITCHED TO THE HIGH POSITION DURING NORMAL OPERATION BECAUSE CONSIDERABLY RICHER MIXTURE THAN NORMAL WILL RESULT.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land
- Flight time: 650 hours in all; 207 in this make and model; 30 in the last 90 days; 569 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,137 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 15, 1983; 88 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-470-S (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DPA West Chicago IL at 3:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 13 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 10,000 ft; not recorded at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:35 pm from DPA, 14 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 1 | 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.