Cessna 500 accident near Gualala, California, July 8, 1984
On July 8, 1984 at about 1:30 am local time, a Cessna 500, registered N555CC, was substantially damaged in an accident near Gualala, California (Ocean Ridge airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 6 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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
- July 8, 1984 · about 1:30 am local time
- Place
- Gualala, California · Ocean Ridge · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 6 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 500 · all 500s on the register
- Registration
- N555CC · registry record · serial 500-0039
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ON AN AIR TAXI FLT TO A PRIVATELY OWNED, PUBLIC USE ARPT, THE TRANSPORT CATEGORY ACFT TOUCHED DOWN HARD, 7 FT BEYOND THE BEGINNING OF THE 2500-FT-LONG RWY. THE HARD SURFACED RWY'S STRENGTH WAS INADEQUATE TO SUPPORT THE ACFT'S 9500 LB LDG WEIGHT & THE ACFT'S LEFT WHEEL PENETRATED THROUGH THE 3/8 INCH THICK RWY SURFACE CREATING A 4 INCH DEEP HOLE. AS THE ACFT CONTINUED ITS LDG ROLLOUT THE LEFT LDG GEAR BROKE & SEPARATED FROM THE ACFT. THE ACFT VEERED OFF THE SIDE OF THE RWY & COLLIDED WITH A SHALLOW DIRT EMBANKMENT. THE ARPT WAS BEING OPERATED UNDER A STATE OF CA PERMIT, ISSUED IN THE BASIC UTILITY 1 CLASS & IT WAS DESIGNED FOR LIGHT ACFT HAVING A GROSS WEIGHT OF 6000 LBS OR UNDER. THIS INFORMATION WAS NOT DISSEMINATED BY THE FAA IN EITHER ITS AIRPORT/FACILITY DIRECTORY OR ON THE CURRENT AIRPORT MASTER RECORD. THE PIC'S REQUIRED FIRST CLASS AIRMAN MEDICAL CERTIFICATE HAD EXPIRED. THE RWY LENGTH WAS SHORTER THAN REQUIRED FOR THE AIR TAXI OPERATION.
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, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,600 hours in all; 250 in this make and model; 122 in the last 90 days; 40 in the last 30 days; 4,040 as pilot in command; 1,530 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,867 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, February 23, 1984; 27 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 11,500 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT15D-1 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BFL Bakersfield CA
- Destination: Q69 Gualala CA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 31, 2,500 ft by 50 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 2 knots, gusting 4
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 4 |
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.