Cessna 182A accident near Parkton, North Carolina, November 9, 1997
On November 9, 1997 at about 7:15 pm local time, a Cessna 182A, registered N5883B, was substantially damaged in an accident near Parkton, North Carolina (Southern Comfort airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
improper installation of an auto battery cable which led to an in-flight fire due to the chaffed cable.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 9, 1997 · about 7:15 pm local time
- Place
- Parkton, North Carolina · Southern Comfort · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182A · all 182As on the register
- Registration
- N5883B · no longer on the register · serial 33883
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that about 50 feet above the ground after takeoff he began to smell smoke and then saw smoke in the cockpit. He elected to abort the takeoff and land on the runway. He said the airplane bounced once and then landed. After touchdown he steered straight with both brakes full on. When it became apparent that he could not stop before the trees at the end of the runway, he began a hard turn to right. The left main landing gear failed, the left wing hit the ground and the aircraft came to a stop. Examination of the wreckage revealed that a chafed auto battery cable, aft of the firewall, caused the soundproofing on the firewall to catch fire.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,237 hours in all; 438 in this make and model; 41 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 3,081 as pilot in command; 2,261 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,720 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 20, 1997; 92 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 0
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470L (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 35W at 1:50 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 19, 4,000 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 4 |
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 N5883B 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.