Grumman G164A accident near Mendota, California, February 22, 1983
On February 22, 1983 at about 7:00 pm local time, a Grumman G164A, registered N8679H, was destroyed in an accident near Mendota, California. 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 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
- February 22, 1983 · about 7:00 pm local time
- Place
- Mendota, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Grumman G164A · all G164As on the register
- Registration
- N8679H · no longer on the register · serial 1464
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH WIRES AND CRASHED DURING AND AERIAL APPLICATION FLIGHT. THE ACFT STALLED AFTER HITTING THE WIRES WITH THE LEFT WING AND WAS OUT OF CONTROL WHEN IT HIT THE GROUND AND NOSED OVER. THE PILOT SAID HE HAD 3 MILES VISIBILITY. HE WAS ALSO FAMILAR WITH THE FIELD AND ITS ENVIRONMENT. WEATHER OBSERVATION FROM FRESNO, LOCATED 32 MILES EAST.
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
- Flight time: 20,800 hours in all; 5,000 in this make and model; 45 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,705 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, February 15, 1982; 8 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,075 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W 1340 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 5 knots
- Sky: not recorded at 200 ft
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:50 pm from FAT, 32 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.