Cessna 206 accident near Merced, California, December 12, 1982
On December 12, 1982 at about 4:38 pm local time, a Cessna 206, registered N4687F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Merced, California (Merced Municipal airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was 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
- December 12, 1982 · about 4:38 pm local time
- Place
- Merced, California · Merced Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 206 · all 206s on the register
- Registration
- N4687F · no longer on the register · serial P206-0287
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE TRANSCRIPT REVEALED THAT THE PLT WAS CLEARED FOR AN ILS RWY 30 APCH APPROXIMATELY 2 MI FROM THE OUTER MARKER. THE WX GIVEN TO THE PLT AT THAT TIME WAS INDEFINITE CEILING ZERO, SKY OBSCURED & VISIBILITY ZERO WITH FOG. THE PLT STATED AN INSTRUMENT APCH WAS PLANNED BUT A CLEAR AREA WAS OBSERVED SOUTH OF THE ARPT. THE CLEAR AREA WAS ENTERED & AN ATTEMPT MADE TO FLY TO THE ARPT BENEATH THE FOG. THE ACFT STRUCK A UTILITY POLE WEST OF THE RWY 30 LOCALIZER COURSE, CIRCLED LEFT & CRASHED. THE ACFT'S GLIDE SLOPE RECEIVER SENSITIVITY WAS FOUND TO BE BELOW THE MANUFACTURER'S SPECIFICATIONS, WHICH WOULD HAVE RESULTED IN A GLIDE SLOPE "OFF" INDICATION IN THE COCKPIT.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 661 hours in all; 661 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days; 521 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (invalid medical for flight)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,854 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 31 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: C Bakersfield CA
- Destination: C Merced CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 30, 5,903 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 100°F (38°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 am from MCE
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.