Cessna T188C accident near Shaw, Mississippi, May 8, 1986
On May 8, 1986 at about 8:00 pm local time, a Cessna T188C, registered N3041J, was substantially damaged in an accident near Shaw, Mississippi. 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 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 8, 1986 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- Shaw, Mississippi · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna T188C · all T188Cs on the register
- Registration
- N3041J · no longer on the register · serial T18803594T
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT STATED THAT SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF HE NOTICED THE FUEL CAP WAS LOOSE. HE THEN TURNED DOWNWIND TO LAND, AT WHICH TIME THE AIRCRAFT STALLED, RESULTING IN THE RIGHT WING COLLIDING WITH TREES.
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
- Flight time: 14,800 hours in all; 14,450 in this make and model; 30 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,580 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,500 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-T (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,000 ft; scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:52 pm from GLH, 15 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.
Other NTSB records under N3041J the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.