Cessna 180A accident near Topeka, Kansas, November 17, 1983
On November 17, 1983 at about 2:30 pm local time, a Cessna 180A, registered N7814A, was substantially damaged in an accident near Topeka, Kansas (Phillip Billard Muni airport). It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 17, 1983 · about 2:30 pm local time
- Place
- Topeka, Kansas · Phillip Billard Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 180A · all 180As on the register
- Registration
- N7814A · registry record · serial 32711
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT VEERED OFF THE RWY INTO THE GRASS AND COLLAPSED THE MAIN LANDING GEAR DURING TAKEOFF. THE PILOTS SEAT SLID AFT AS THE ACFT ACCELERATED AND THE PILOT LOST CONTROL OF THE ACFT. THE ACFT VEERED OFF THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY INTO THE GRASS. THE PILOT INDICATED THAT HE ADJUSTED HIS SEAT BEFORE TAKEOFF AND HAD TO FORCE THE SEAT LOCKING PIN INTO POSITION.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,300 hours in all; 150 in this make and model; 14 in the last 90 days; 3,300 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,365 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 18, 1983; 32 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-K (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: H64 Lamar MO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 5,099 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 12 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 20,000 ft
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:45 pm from FOE, 6 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Other NTSB records under N7814A the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number MKC84LA026.