Cessna 206G accident near Georgetown, Texas, August 7, 1987
On August 7, 1987 at about 6:45 am local time, a Cessna 206G, registered N8873Q, was substantially damaged in an accident near Georgetown, Texas (Georgetown airport). 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
- August 7, 1987 · about 6:45 am local time
- Place
- Georgetown, Texas · Georgetown · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 206G · all 206Gs on the register
- Registration
- N8873Q · no longer on the register · serial U20603560
- 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
TEARDOWN OF THE AIRCRAFT ENGINE REVEALED THAT THE ENGINE COUNTERWEIGHT VIBRATION DAMPER ASSEMBLY WAS OUT OF TOLERANCE. THIS ALLOWED EXCESSIVE ENGINE VIBRATION WHICH RESULTED IN FAILURE OF THE CAMSHAFT DRIVE GEAR AND TOTAL ENGINE FAILURE. THE PILOT EXECUTED A FORCED LANDING INTO A WOODED AREA. ALTITUDE WOULD NOT ALLOW HIM TO REACH THE GEORGETOWN AIRPORT AND THE PILOT STATED THAT HE STALLED THE AIRCRAFT AND ALLOWED IT TO SETTLE INTO THE TREES TO MINIMIZE IMPACT SPEED. THE AIRCRAFT WAS EQUIPPED WITH ONE PASSENGER SEAT AND TWO PAESENGERS WERE ON BOARD THE AIRCRAFT AT IMPACT. THE PASSENGER JUMPSEAT NORMALLY IN THE REAR OF THE AIRCRAFT HAD BEEN REMOVED. THE SECOND PASSENGER WAS SITTING IN THE CARGO AREA BEHIND THE CREW COMPARTMENT.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,737 hours in all; 730 in this make and model; 266 in the last 90 days; 1,477 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,500 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 7, 1987; 75 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-F (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Air Express,Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: AUS Austin TX at 6:30 am
- Destination: ACT Waco TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 4,100 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 190° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 12 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:50 am from AUS, 27 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.