Amateur-built SV4B accident near Clarksville, Arkansas, April 18, 1982
On April 18, 1982 at about 6:00 pm local time, a amateur-built SV4B, registered N80243, was destroyed in an accident near Clarksville, Arkansas (Clarksville Municipal 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. 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
- April 18, 1982 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Clarksville, Arkansas · Clarksville Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built SV4B
- Registration
- N80243 · registry record · serial 107564627819
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT WAS PARTICIPATING IN A SPOT LANDING ACTIVITY AT A FLY-IN. HE STATED THAT HE MADE A POOR LANDING AND ALLOWED THE AIRCRAFT TO DRIFT LEFT AND OFF OF THE RUNWAY. IN ORDER TO MISS THE RUNWAY LIGHTS, HE ADDED POWER AND INITIATED A GO-AROUND. AFTER LIFT-OFF, HE LOWERED THE NOSE TO GAIN AIRSPEED, BUT THEN HAD TO PULL UP TO CLEAR TREES. AFTER CLEARING THE TREES, HE THOUGHT HE HAD SUFFICIENT AIRSPEED TO TURN AND RE-ENTER THE TRAFFIC PATTERN. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, THE AIRSPEED AND ALTITUDE BEGAN TO DETERIORATE. THE PILOT TRIED TO GO THROUGH A CLEARING WITH TREES ON EITHER SIDE. HOWEVER, THE PLANE STRUCK A TREETOP AND CRASHED.
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: single-engine land
- Flight time: 238 hours in all; 26 in this make and model; 90 in the last 90 days; 191 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 700 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Gypsy Moth SERIES 8 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: H35 Clarksville AR at 11:56 am
- Destination: H35 Clarksville AR
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 130° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; scat at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 144°F (62°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.