Cessna 170A accident near Prague, Oklahoma, May 14, 1983
On May 14, 1983, a Cessna 170A, registered N170KM, was substantially damaged in an accident near Prague, Oklahoma (Prague airport). It was a personal flight 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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 14, 1983 · cases in 1983
- Place
- Prague, Oklahoma · Prague · cases near this airport
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 170A · all 170As on the register
- Registration
- N170KM · registry record · serial 19166
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE TURNING TO BASE LEG FOR LANDING THE ENG QUIT. WITH INSUFFICIENT ALTITUDE TO REACH THE ARPT, THE PLT SELECTED ANOTHER FIELD, BUT LANDED SHORT IN ROUGH TERRAIN. A LARGE QUANTITY OF WATER WAS FOUND IN THE ACFT'S FUEL TANKS WHICH WASTRACED TO A CONTAMINATED FUEL STORAGE TANK AT THE ACFT'S HOME BASE.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,386 hours in all; 1,200 in this make and model; 20 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,820 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 20, 1983
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ADM Ardmore OK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 3,000 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 110° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 25,000 ft; scat at 3,200 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:50 pm from OKC
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 N170KM the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N170KM on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 170 2,085 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,677 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Continental O-300 6,625 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Integris Baptist Medical Center Heliport · nearest airport
- Ardmore Municipal · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Oklahoma 1,300 since 1982 · 181 in the last ten years
- Oklahoma 5,661 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N170KM 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/FTW83LA233.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.