Pzl-Mielec M-18A accident near Marmaduke, Arkansas, May 30, 2000
On May 30, 2000 at about 6:30 pm local time, a Pzl-Mielec M-18A, registered N2065S, was destroyed in an accident near Marmaduke, Arkansas. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane, which resulted in an inadvertent stall/mush.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 30, 2000 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Marmaduke, Arkansas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Pzl-Mielec M-18A
- Registration
- N2065S · registry record · serial 12024-16
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While maneuvering during an aerial application flight, the pilot reported that the airplane 'had a violent vibration.' The pilot leveled the wings, pitched the nose down, and added power. He then flew the airplane straight and level for 1.5 miles. As the pilot banked the airplane right to turn back into the wind, the airplane began descending. The pilot added more power, but the airplane continued to descend. Although the pilot executed an emergency hopper dump and added full power, the airplane descended into a cotton field. The right landing gear touched the ground, and the airplane began skidding across the field. After passing under power lines and across a highway, the airplane began to climb. Subsequently, the airplane impacted trees and came to rest in a near vertical attitude against a tree. The pilot did not report any mechanical anomalies with the aircraft.
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: 4,863 hours in all; 239 in this make and model; 86 in the last 90 days; 16 in the last 30 days; 4,750 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,263 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 19, 1999; 146 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 10,300 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Pzl-Kalisz PZL ASZ-62IR (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Sky King Aviation, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: 7M8 Rector AR at 6:05 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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 N2065S the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.