Rockwell International 114 accident near Cairo, Illinois, August 9, 2017
On August 9, 2017 at about 5:00 pm local time, a 1976 Rockwell International 114, registered N4986S, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Cairo, Illinois (Cairo Rgnl airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to extend the landing gear before landing, which resulted in a gear-up landing and a runway overrun.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 9, 2017 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- Cairo, Illinois · Cairo Rgnl · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Rockwell International 114 B, built 1976 · all 114s on the register
- Registration
- N4986S · no longer on the register · serial 14019
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane touched down during landing with the landing gear retracted and skidded to a stop in grass about 140 ft past the end of the runway threshold. The pilot reported during a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge that, "it was a simple gear-up landing, I forgot to put the [landing gear] switch down." He added that he was not wearing noise canceling headphones, and he reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The left wing sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported in the NTSB Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident/Incident Report, "no accident, as specified by NTSB for gear up landing, is admitted."
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
What happened, in order
- Landing gear not configured during landing defining event
- Runway excursion during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Landing gear selector › Not used/operated
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Forgotten action/omission › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,520 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 28, 2016
- Maximum gross weight: 3,140 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540 (piston); 735 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MWA Marion IL at 4:30 pm
- Destination: CIR Cairo IL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 20, 3,200 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.13 inHg
- Observation at 4:55 pm from KCIR
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number GAA17CA483.