Cessna A188B accident near Holdenville, Oklahoma, August 21, 1988
On August 21, 1988 at about 11:35 am local time, a Cessna A188B, registered N731CT, was destroyed in an accident near Holdenville, Oklahoma. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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 21, 1988 · about 11:35 am local time
- Place
- Holdenville, Oklahoma · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A188B · all A188Bs on the register
- Registration
- N731CT · registry record · serial 1880279T
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT WAS IN CRUISE FLIGHT AT 500 FT AGL WHEN A TOTAL LOSS OF POWER OCCURRED. THE PILOT JETTISONED THE LOAD AND EXECUTED AN EMERGENCY DESCENT TO LAND AT THE NEAREST AVAILABLE CLEARING. THE AIRCRAFT COLLIDED WITH THE TERRAIN WITH HIGH RATE OF DESCENT AND LOW FORWARD AIRSPEED. AN ENGINE FIRE ERUPTED WHICH WAS CONTAINED WITHIN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. POST ACC INVESTIGATION SHOWED THAT THE LEFT FUEL TANK ALMOST EMPTY BUT THE RT TANK WAS FULL. THE LANDING AREA AVAILABLE WAS SHORT AND SURROUNDED BY 60 FT TREES. THE ACFT WAS STALLED INTENTIONALLY TO AVOID THE TREES. THE LANDING GEAR FAILED ON IMPACT AND THE ACFT STOPPED ALMOST IMMEDIATELY.
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: 8,783 hours in all; 6,500 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 100 in the last 30 days; 8,320 as pilot in command; 90 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,923 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 18, 1988; 197 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,200 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.