Cessna 402C accident near Prescott, Arizona, January 18, 1988
On January 18, 1988 at about 4:25 pm local time, a Cessna 402C, registered N6842Q, was substantially damaged in an accident near Prescott, Arizona (Love Field). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 9 people were 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
- January 18, 1988 · about 4:25 pm local time
- Place
- Prescott, Arizona · Love Field
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 9 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 402C · all 402Cs on the register
- Registration
- N6842Q · no longer on the register · serial 402C0501
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, 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: 4,574 hours in all; 423 in this make and model; 364 in the last 90 days; 99 in the last 30 days; 4,200 as pilot in command; 1,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,024 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, January 8, 1988; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,850 lb
- Seats: 10
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-VB (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PHX Phoenix AZ at 4:25 pm
- Destination: PRC Prescott AZ
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 21, 7,608 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,200 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:49 pm from PRC
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 8 |
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.