Cessna R172K accident near Near Paris, Arkansas, November 12, 1982
On November 12, 1982 at about 2:10 am local time, a Cessna R172K, registered N736QD, was destroyed in an accident near Near Paris, Arkansas. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- November 12, 1982 · about 2:10 am local time
- Place
- Near Paris, Arkansas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna R172K · all R172Ks on the register
- Registration
- N736QD · no longer on the register · serial R1722697
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT & PAX WERE ON A FLT FROM AMARILLO, TX TO LITTLE ROCK, AR. AN ENROUTE STOP WAS MADE AT HASKELL, OK AT APPR 1900 TO REFUEL. THE OWNER OF THE AFPT AT HASKELL STATED THAT THE PLANE ARRIVED IN A FAIRLY HEAVY RAINSTORM. AT THAT TIME, A WINTER TYPE COLD FRONT WAS MOVING EAST THRU TEXAS, OKLAHOMA & ARKANSAS. NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS & HEAVY RAINSTORMS WERE PRESENT & A TORNADO WATCH WAS IN EFFECT FROM 2130 TO 0100 FOR EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND WEST ARKANSAS. THE ARPT OWNER SUGGESTED WAITING OVER NIGHT & OFFERED ACCOMODATIONS, BUT SAID THE PLT & PAX WERE IN A HURRY. REPORTEDLY, RAIN WAS FALLING QUITE HEAVILY WHEN THEY WENT TO THE ACFT. THEY WAITED UNTIL THE STORM SUBSIDED THEN TKOF; HOWEVER, THEIR PLANNED ROUTE WOULD HAVE TAKEN THEM THRU THE SAME STORM. AT APPRX 2010 A WITNESS NEAR THE CRASH SITE HEARD VARIATIONS IN ENGINE PWR. HE WENT OUTSIDE & OBSERVED THE PLANE APPRX 10 TO 15 SEC BFR IT WENT OUT OF SIGHT THEN HEARD ON EXPLOSION & SAW A FIREBALL WHEN THE PLANE HIT A MTN SIDE AT NGT. NO PREIMPACT ENGINE FAILURE WAS FOUND.
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: 709 hours in all; 709 in this make and model; 45 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 524 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (invalid medical for flight)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,652 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-360-K (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: AMA Haskel OK at 8:10 pm
- Destination: LIT Little Rock AR
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 300° at 20 knots
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°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.