Cessna 185F accident near Point Aufer, Louisiana, April 4, 1986
On April 4, 1986 at about 4:15 pm local time, a Cessna 185F, registered N1867Q, was substantially damaged in an accident near Point Aufer, Louisiana. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 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
- April 4, 1986 · about 4:15 pm local time
- Place
- Point Aufer, Louisiana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 185F · all 185Fs on the register
- Registration
- N1867Q · no longer on the register · serial 18503497
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT REPORTED LOSING CONTROL OF HIS AIRCRAFT, DURING TAKEOFF FROM A CANAL AT POINT AUFER ISLAND, LA, WHEN GUSTY WIND CONDITIONS LIFTED A WING, CAUSING THE AIRCRAFT TO COLLIDE WITH A BANK. AFTER THE COLLISION, THE AIRCRAFT CONTINUED UP ONTO THE CANAL BANK, WHERE IT CAME TO REST IN AN INVERTED POSITION.
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: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,000 hours in all; 7,000 in this make and model; 195 in the last 90 days; 7,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,132 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 3, 1986; 88 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental 10-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: Bayou Piechant LA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 109° at 12 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 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.
Other NTSB records under N1867Q the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.