Cessna A188B accident near Meade, Kansas, August 22, 1985
On August 22, 1985 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Cessna A188B, registered N731SM, was substantially damaged in an accident near Meade, Kansas. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person had minor injuries. 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
- August 22, 1985 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Meade, Kansas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A188B · all A188Bs on the register
- Registration
- N731SM · registry record · serial 18803119
- 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 REPORTED THAT WHEN HE ATTEMPTED TO CLIMB AT THE END OF A SWATH RUN THE ACFT BEGAN TO MUSH. THE ACFT WAS OVER TALL CORN AND DESPITE THE USE OF FULL POWER IT WOULD NOT CLIMB. THE ACFT FLEW ABOUT ONE MILE IN THE SEMI-STALLED CONDITION AND THEN BEGAN TO SETTLE. THE PLT SAID HE ATTEMPTED TO DUMP THE CHEMICAL LOAD BUT THE ACFT SETTLED INTO THE CORN AND CRASHED. DENSITY ALT AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT WAS CALCULATED TO BE 4800 FT.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 9,852 hours in all; 1,000 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,114 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 7, 1985; 175 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 14 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:50 pm from DDC, 30 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.
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.