Bellanca 17-30A accident near Hebbronville, Texas, December 3, 1983
On December 3, 1983, a Bellanca 17-30A, registered N4097B, was destroyed in an accident near Hebbronville, Texas (Jim Hogg County airport). It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. 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 3, 1983
- Place
- Hebbronville, Texas · Jim Hogg County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bellanca 17-30A · all 17-30As on the register
- Registration
- N4097B · no longer on the register · serial 76-30806
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE FLT PROCEEDED WITHOUT INCIDENT UNTIL THE PLT CONTACTED HOUSTON ARTCC. THE PLT REQUESTED THE DESTINATION WX & WAS TOLD THAT THE ENTIRE AREA WAS IFR. THE CLOSEST ARPT REPORTING VFR CONDITIONS WAS AT MCALLEN, TX, APRX 80 MI SOUTHEAST. THE PLT THEN ADVISED THAT HE DID NOT HAVE ENOUGH FUEL TO REACH MCALLEN. AT 1828 CST, HE ADVISED THAT THE DESTINATION ARPT WAS SIGHTED BELOW. THE CONTROLLER ACKNOWLEDGED & CLEARED THE PLT TO CHANGE FREQUENCY FOR LANDING. ABOUT 7 MIN LATER, THE ACFT CRASHED IN OPEN MESQUITE RANGE WHILE IN A SLIGHT NOSE DOWN, SLIGHT LEFT BANK ATTITUDE, AT HI SPEED. RADAR DATA SHOWED THAT AFTER THE PLT'S LAST RADIO TRANSMISSION, THE ACFT OVERFLEW THE ARPT, TURNED LEFT & PROCEEDED NORTH, AWAY FROM THE ARPT, ABOUT 5 MI NORTH, IT MADE A 360 TURN, THEN CONTINUED 2 TO 3 MI FURTHER NORTH. A 180DEG TURN WAS THEN MADE & RADAR CONTACT WAS LOST. DURING THAT TIME, THE ALT VARIED CONSIDERABLY. A RANCH FOREMAN HEARD THE ACFT FLYING AROUND BEFORE IT CRASHED. HE REPORTED AN OVERCAST WITH FOG & VISIBILITY LESS THAN 1/8 MI.
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: 293 hours in all; 257 in this make and model; 31 in the last 90 days; 13 in the last 30 days; 203 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 974 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 1, 1983; 38 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,325 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-K (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PVW Plainview TX at 8:00 pm
- Destination: 03XS Hebbronville TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 13, 5,000 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 330° at 3 knots
- Sky: overcast at 100 ft; not recorded at 100 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:46 pm from LRD, 50 miles away
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.