Cessna TR 182 accident near Mesa, Arizona, May 29, 1985
On May 29, 1985 at about 11:13 pm local time, a Cessna TR 182, registered N737YN, was destroyed in an accident near Mesa, Arizona (Falcon Fld airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 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
- May 29, 1985 · about 11:13 pm local time
- Place
- Mesa, Arizona · Falcon Fld · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna TR 182 · all TR 182s on the register
- Registration
- N737YN · no longer on the register · serial R 18200896
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING INITIAL CLIMB ON A DUAL INSTRUCTIONAL FLIGHT A FIRE ERUPTED BEHIND THE INSTRUMENT PANEL & THE ACFT WAS RETURNED FOR LANDING. DURING ROLL OUT 6 INCH LONG FLAMES, SMOKE & NOXIOUS FUMES FILLED THE COCKPIT. WHEN THE ACFT SLOWED TO 10 MPH THE PLTS EXITED THE ACFT & THEREAFTER IT WAS DESTROYED BY FIRE. EXAM OF THE ACFT REVEALED THAT THE 15 AMP RATED WIRE 'DA1,' WHICH ROUTES CURRENT BETWEEN THE AMMETER, THE FLAP SWITCH & THE CIRCUIT BREAKER/BUS TERMINAL CONNECTOR HAD SHORTED & HAD FUSED ONTO THE CARBURETOR HEAD CONTROL LEVER. DURING MANUFACTURE OF THE ACFT THE WIRE IS NOT ROUTED AGAINST THE CARB. HEAT CONTROL LEVER. HOWEVER, DURING MAINTENANCE OF THE NEARBY GEAR SELECTOR LINES WIRE DA1 COULD BE IMPROPERLY REROUTED & THUS PRESSED AGAINST THE CARBURETOR CONTROL LEVER WHICH MAY RESULT IN EVENTUAL WEAR & ELECTRICAL SHORTING.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,550 hours in all; 17 in this make and model; 311 in the last 90 days; 121 in the last 30 days; 1,410 as pilot in command; 1,040 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,182 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 1, 1985; 25 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,100 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-L3CSD (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Superstition Air Serv., INC.
The flight
- Departed from: FFZ Mesa AZ at 11:10 pm
- Destination: FFZ Mesa AZ
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 4, 3,800 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 45 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 20,000 ft; scat at 15,000 ft
- Temperature: 93°F (34°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:00 pm from FFZ
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.