Cessna A185F accident near Tomball, Texas, August 12, 1984
On August 12, 1984 at about 3:20 pm local time, a Cessna A185F, registered N802DM, was destroyed in an accident near Tomball, Texas (David Wayne Hooks airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were 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
- August 12, 1984 · about 3:20 pm local time
- Place
- Tomball, Texas · David Wayne Hooks · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A185F · all A185Fs on the register
- Registration
- N802DM · registry record · serial 18504006
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
BEFORE TAKEOFF 2 PAXS BOARDED SO THE INSTRUCTOR COULD DEMONSTRATE TO THE STUDENT THE EFFECT THAT ADDITIONAL WEIGHT HAS ON ACFT HANDLING ON WATER. ACCORDING TO THE INSTRUCTOR THE ACFT WOULD NOT BECOME AIRBORNE DURING TAKEOFF. THE ACFT OVERRAN THE WATERWAY, WENT OVER AN EMBANKMENT AND ONTO A LAND MASS WHERE IT NOSED OVER. THE STUDENT STARTED THETAKEOFF RUN AND THE INSTRUCTOR TOOK OVER WHEN HE REALIZED THAT THE ACFT WAS NOT LIFTING OFF. THE WATERWAY WAS 2600 FT LONG. TAILWIND OF 5 KNOTS.
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; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,756 hours in all; 33 in this make and model; 158 in the last 90 days; 3,528 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,793 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection; 49 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: DWH Tomball TX at 3:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 2,600 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 310° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.