Cessna 180A accident near Stake Island, September 11, 1983
On September 11, 1983, a Cessna 180A, registered N5030E, was substantially damaged in an accident near Stake Island. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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
- September 11, 1983
- Place
- Stake Island
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 180A · all 180As on the register
- Registration
- N5030E · no longer on the register · serial 50330
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT STATED, THAT WHILE FLYING OVER GULF WATERS HE FORGOT TO SET HIS ALTIMETER AND THOUGHT HE WAS AT 200 FT WHEN THE ACFT CONTACTED THE WATER. THE FLOAT WERE RIPPED OFF AND THE ACFT SANK IN ABOUT 10 FT OF WATER. THE PLT AND PASSENGER HELD ONTO THE FLOAT UNTIL MORNING AND THEN SWAM TO SHORE.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,000 hours in all; 4,000 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 6,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-460-K (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Abeta Springs LA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 360° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 20,000 ft; scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 72°F (22°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.
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.