Bellanca 17-30A accident near Corinth, Mississippi, May 31, 1995
On May 31, 1995 at about 5:00 am local time, a Bellanca 17-30A, registered N4207B, was destroyed in an accident near Corinth, Mississippi (Roscoe Turner airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOTS DECISION TO CONTINUE HIS VFR FLIGHT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS AFTER BEING ADVISED THAT VFR FLIGHT SHOULD NOT BE ATTEMPTED, RESULTING IN SPATIAL DISORIENTATION AND LOSS OF CONTROL. FACTORS IN THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE PILOT'S SELF-INDUCED PRESSURE TO GET TO WORK, THE WEATHER CONDITIONS, AND THE DARK NIGHT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 31, 1995 · about 5:00 am local time
- Place
- Corinth, Mississippi · Roscoe Turner · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Bellanca 17-30A · all 17-30As on the register
- Registration
- N4207B · no longer on the register · serial 74-30711
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING THE CROSS-COUNTRY FLIGHT THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PILOT RECEIVED MULTIPLE ON-THE-GROUND AND IN-THE-AIR RECOMMENDATIONS BY FAA PERSONNEL THAT VFR FLIGHT SHOULD NOT BE ATTEMPTED. SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF, THE AIRPLANE DESCENDED IN A STEEP RIGHT-WING-LOW ATTITUDE AND COLLIDED WITH TREES AND THE GROUND. WITNESSES IN THE AIR AND ON THE GROUND AT THE AIRPORT REPORTED CEILINGS OF 1,000 FEET AND VISIBILITY OF 3 MILES, WITH THE VISIBILITY DECREASING.
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: private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land
- Flight time: 400 hours in all
- Medical certificate: None (expired)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 1995
- Maximum gross weight: 3,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-K (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CRX MS
- Destination: MSL Muscle Shoals AL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 35, 6,500 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 360° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
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.
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.