Cessna A185F accident near New Orleans, Louisiana, December 27, 1982
On December 27, 1982 at about 8:02 pm local time, a Cessna A185F, registered N121BJ, was substantially damaged in an accident near New Orleans, Louisiana. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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
- December 27, 1982 · about 8:02 pm local time
- Place
- New Orleans, Louisiana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A185F · all A185Fs on the register
- Registration
- N121BJ · no longer on the register · serial 18502618
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ENG QUIT WHILE THE AMPHIBIOUS ACFT WAS OVER THE CITY. THE ACFT HAD INSUFFICIENT ALTITUDE TO REACH THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER & THE PLT MADE A FORCED LANDING ON A RESIDENTIAL STREET. THE LEFT MAIN TANK CONTAINED 14 GALS OF FUEL & NO USABLE FUEL WAS IN THE RIGHT TANK.
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: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,400 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 6,160 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,926 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 23 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: C Crown Point LA at 1:50 pm
- Destination: C Covington LA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 1,500 ft
- Temperature: 171°F (77°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:51 pm from NEW
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.