Cessna A188B accident near Britton, South Dakota, August 16, 1982
On August 16, 1982 at about 1:05 am local time, a Cessna A188B, registered N91919, was substantially damaged in an accident near Britton, South Dakota (Britton Municipal airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 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
- August 16, 1982 · about 1:05 am local time
- Place
- Britton, South Dakota · Britton Municipal
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A188B · all A188Bs on the register
- Registration
- N91919 · registry record · serial 18802053T
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHEN THE PILOT DEPARTED TO SPRAY THE LAST FIELD FOR THAT DAY, HE ESTIMATED THAT HE HAD 19 TO 20 GALLONS OF FUEL REMAINING. HE FIGURED IT WOULD TAKE ABOUT 16 TO 17 GALLONS OF FUEL TO COMPLETE THE JOB. ABOUT 1 HR LATER, AS HE WAS RETURNING TO LAND, THE ENGINE LOST POWER. THE PILOT LANDED IN A STUBBLE FIELD, BUT WAS APPROACHING A FENCE BEFORE HE COMPLETED HIS LANDING ROLL. HE TURNED TO AVOID THE FENCE, BUT THE PLANE SLID INTO A FURROW AND THE RIGHT MAIN GEAR FAILED. THE PILOT STATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT RAN OUT OF FUEL.
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: single-engine land
- Flight time: 2,500 hours in all; 1,700 in this make and model; 205 in the last 90 days; 2,435 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,185 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 242 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,300 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 3BT Britton SD at 7:00 pm
- Destination: 3BT Britton SD
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 185°F (85°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.
Other NTSB records under N91919 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number DEN82DA173.