Lake LA-4-200 accident near Waurika, Oklahoma, October 7, 1984
On October 7, 1984 at about 8:45 pm local time, a Lake LA-4-200, registered N6685L, was destroyed in an accident near Waurika, Oklahoma. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people 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
- October 7, 1984 · about 8:45 pm local time
- Place
- Waurika, Oklahoma · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Lake LA-4-200 · all LA-4-200s on the register
- Registration
- N6685L · no longer on the register · serial 448
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ACCORDING TO WITNESSES, THE ACFT NOSE WAS TOO LOW AT WATER CONTACT ON LNDG TOUCHDOWN AND THE NOSE AND RIGHT PONTOON DUG INTO THE WATER. THE ACFT SWERVED ABRUPTLY TO THE RIGHT, FLIPPED INVERTED AND SANK. NO LOGS OR OTHER FLOATING DEBRIS WERE LOCATED DURING A POST MISHAP CHECK OF THE AREA.
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; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,364 hours in all; 176 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 6,248 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,389 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 11, 1983; 19 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,350 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OK08 Lawton OK
- Destination: Waurika Lake OK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 350° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:57 pm from FSI, 45 miles away
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.