Gulfstream 500B accident near Mission, Kansas, April 22, 1997
On April 22, 1997 at about 8:30 am local time, a Gulfstream 500B, registered N4918, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mission, Kansas (Kansas City Downtown airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's inadequate preflight planning which resulted in fuel exhaustion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 22, 1997 · about 8:30 am local time
- Place
- Mission, Kansas · Kansas City Downtown · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Gulfstream 500B
- Registration
- N4918 · no longer on the register · serial 1482-173
- 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 pilot was on the fourth leg of a night flight when he reported to air traffic control that both engines had sustained a total loss of power. The airplane contacted a pole and landed hard during the off airport forced landing. The pilot had flown this route previously in the same make and model aircraft, however this was the pilots first time flying this route in this airplane. Only trace amounts of fuel were found in the airplane's center fuel tank which feeds both engines. No compromised fuel tanks were found on the airplane, and no odor of fuel, or fuel stains were found in the area around the accident site. Testing of the airplane's fuel gauge, and fuel sender following the accident did not reveal any discrepancies.
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 single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,109 hours in all; 188 in this make and model; 312 in the last 90 days; 108 in the last 30 days; 2,036 as pilot in command; 1,149 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 18,000 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 6,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-B1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: M And M Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: OKC Oklahoma City OK at 6:51 am
- Destination: MKC
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 040° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,000 ft; clear
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:45 am from MKC, 5 miles away
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.