Cessna 188A accident near Hunter, Arkansas, August 23, 1990
On August 23, 1990 at about 1:00 pm local time, a Cessna 188A, registered N3566Q, was destroyed in an accident near Hunter, Arkansas. 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 PILOT'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN PROPER CLEARANCE ABOVE THE CROPS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 23, 1990 · about 1:00 pm local time
- Place
- Hunter, Arkansas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 188A · all 188As on the register
- Registration
- N3566Q · no longer on the register · serial 188-0516
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE SPRAYING PESTICIDE ON A RICE FIELD THE MAIN LANDING GEAR CONTACTED CROPS. THE RIGHT MAIN GEAR HIT A RICE LEVEE AND THE RIGHT WING DUG INTO THE GROUND, FLIPPING THE AIRPLANE INVERTED AND TO THE LEFT 90 DEGREES.
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: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 15,856 hours in all; 554 in this make and model; 31 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 12,885 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,932 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 2, 1989; 174 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,300 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 86°F (30°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:49 pm from LIT, 44 miles away
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.