Cessna 336 accident near Magee, Mississippi, September 15, 2004
On September 15, 2004 at about 7:50 am local time, a Cessna 336, registered N3832U, was destroyed in an accident near Magee, Mississippi (Magee Municipal Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot/ airplane owner's lack of training in night operations, which resulted in spatial disorientation, a loss of control, an uncontrolled descent, and an impact with trees.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 15, 2004 · about 7:50 am local time
- Place
- Magee, Mississippi · Magee Municipal Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 336 · all 336s on the register
- Registration
- N3832U · no longer on the register · serial 3360132
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The accident airplane crashed while maneuvering to land in the vicinity of the airport, September 15, 2004. On board the airplane was the student pilot/owner, as well as his wife and children. A relative had reported the family as missing on September 24, 2004, and the investigation that followed revealed that the family had last been seen on September 14, 2004, at the Atmore Airport, Atmore, Alabama. The airplane was discovered on October 4 , 2004, by the Mississippi Wing of the Civil Air Patrol, about 2.5 nautical miles from the airport. According to records, the student pilot had accumulated a total of 96.5 flight hours, of which about 43.3 flight hours were in the same make and model airplane. he had also accumulated 3.4 hours of night flight experience, and he had not recorded any flight experience within the previous 90 days. According to information obtained from the accident pilot's flight instructor, his student had last received instruction on September 9, 2003, and at that time he was not given an endorsement to operate the airplane solo. Postcrash examination of the airplane did not reveal any anomalies with its structure, flight controls, or engines.
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
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 96 hours in all; 43 in this make and model; 0 in the last 90 days; 0 in the last 30 days; 0 as pilot in command; 0 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,147.2 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 18, 2004; 25 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,900 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine 1: Teledyne Continental IO-360-C4 (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Teledyne Continental IO-360-C4 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 0R1 Atmore AL at 5:57 am
- Destination: 17M Magee MS
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 3,104 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 100° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 29.90 inHg
- Observation at 7:54 am from JAN, 36 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.