Cessna A188B accident near Randalette, Oklahoma, September 5, 1999
On September 5, 1999 at about 2:30 pm local time, a Cessna A188B, registered N731PW, was substantially damaged in an accident near Randalette, 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 failure of the pilot to maintain clearance with the telephone pole. A factor was the sunglare.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 5, 1999 · about 2:30 pm local time
- Place
- Randalette, 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
- N731PW · registry record · serial 18803057T
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane's right wing contacted a telephone pole when the pilot was blinded by the sun, while maneuvering during an aerial application flight. According to the pilot, the airplane was in a left bank turning towards the east, when the sun 'blinded him.' He added that as he was 'watching thru the satloc, [he] saw one pole pass under [the] right wing, then one under [the] left, so [he] pushed down.' Subsequently, the right wing contacted a third telephone pole, and the airplane impacted the ground and came to rest inverted.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 20,000 hours in all; 7,000 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 35 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,207 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 1, 1999; 329 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OK26 Tipton OK at 1:45 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 pm from LAW, 20 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.