Cessna 501 accident near Harrison, Arkansas, May 22, 1985
On May 22, 1985 at about 1:15 am local time, a Cessna 501, registered N10GE, was destroyed in an accident near Harrison, Arkansas (Boone County airport). It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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 22, 1985 · about 1:15 am local time
- Place
- Harrison, Arkansas · Boone County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 501 · all 501s on the register
- Registration
- N10GE · no longer on the register · serial 501-0022
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT 2003 CDT, THE FLT WAS CLEARED FOR AN ILS LOCALIZER APCH TO RWY 36 AT THE HARRISON/BOON COUNTY ARPT. ABOUT 7 MIN LATER, THE AIRCREW REPORTED MAKING A MISSED APCH & THE FLT WAS CLEARED TO THE OUTER COMPASS LOCATOR FOR ANOTHER APCH. THE CREW ASKED THE HARRISON FSS SPECIALIST TO INCREASE THE INTENSITY OF THE APCH LIGHTS BECAUSE THEY DID NOT SEE THE ARPT UNTIL MID-FIELD; THE SPECIALIST COMPLIED. AT ABOUT 2015 CST, THE AIRCREW REPORTED INBOUND AT THE BAKKY INTERSECTION (OUTER MARKER). THE OUTER MARKER WAS LOCATED 4.7 MI SOUTH OF THE I-HRO LOCALIZER DME ON AN OUT BOUND HEADING OF 179 GEG. WHEN THE FLT DID NOT ARRIVE, A SEARCH WAS INITIATED. THE WRECKAGE WAS FOUND WHERE THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH A MOUNTAIN AT THE 1840' LEVEL ON A HDG OF 335 DEG, 3.5 MI WSW OF THE ARPT. THE CRASH SITE WAS ALSO LOCATED ALONG THE 179 DEG RADIAL OF THE HARRISON VOR, ROUGHLY THE SAME DISTANCE & DIRECTION FROM THE VOR AS THE OUTER MARKER WAS FROM THE LOCALIZER DME. THE ARPT WX WAS 500' OVERCAST, 2 MI VISIBILITY WITH FOG. ARPT ELEVATION - 1364' MSL.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 11,850 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT15D-1A (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: PLK Point Lookout MO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 070° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast; not recorded
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.