Cessna 401 accident near Sunflower, Arizona, March 18, 1982
On March 18, 1982 at about 7:10 pm local time, a Cessna 401, registered N499W, was destroyed in an accident near Sunflower, Arizona. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 5 people were killed and 2 people were seriously injured. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- March 18, 1982 · about 7:10 pm local time
- Place
- Sunflower, Arizona · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 5 people were killed and 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 401 · all 401s on the register
- Registration
- N499W · registry record · serial 0273
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT 1027 THE PLT RECEIVED A WX BRIEFING FOR HOLBROOK, AZ. THE PLT WAS TOLD OF FORECASTS FOR "AT LEAST MODERATE ICING IN CLOUDS OR IN PRECIPITATION ABOVE THE FREEZING LEVEL" & THE BRIEFER STATED "I GUARANTEE YOU MODERATE TO SEVERE TURBULENCE..." FOR A ROUTE INTO HOLBROOK. THE PLT LATER GOT WX INFO FOR AMARILLO, TX & FILED AN IFR FLT PLAN TO AMARILLO. THE ACFT DEPARTED AT 1150. AT 1204 THE PLT REPORTED HE HAD AN ENG PROBLEM. RADAR PLOTS INDICATE THE ACFT WAS MAINTAINING A CLIMB OF ABOUT 500 FPM UP TO 11,200 FT. THIRTY SECONDS LATER THE ACFT HAD DESCENDED TO 8,500 FT. RADIO & CONTACT WAS LOST ABOUT 1207. BASED ON A WX STUDY THE PROBABLE METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS THAT EXISTED ABOUT THE TIME & IN THE AREA OF THE ACCIDENT WERE MODERATE TO SEVERE TURBULENCE BELOW 12,000 FT MSL & WHILE IN THE CLOUDS ABOVE FREEZING LEVEL THE ACFT LIKELY ENCOUNTERED MODERATE TO SEVERE RIME ICING. THE ACFT WAS NOT CERTIFICATED FOR FLT INTO KNOWN ICING CONDITIONS. THE FLT WAS TRANSPORTING PRISONERS FOR VARIOUS GOVERNMENT AGENCIES.
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: 2,950 hours in all; 364 in this make and model; 279 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,484 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 62 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-E (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Air Security Transport CORP.
The flight
- Departed from: Phoenix AZ
- Destination: Amarillo TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 5,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 4 | 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.