Lockheed 18-56 (HOWARD 250) accident near Texarkana, Arkansas, August 28, 1986
On August 28, 1986 at about 11:53 am local time, a Lockheed 18-56 (HOWARD 250), registered N252K, was destroyed in an accident near Texarkana, Arkansas (Texarkana Muni/Webb Field). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were killed. 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 28, 1986 · about 11:53 am local time
- Place
- Texarkana, Arkansas · Texarkana Muni/Webb Field
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Lockheed 18-56 (HOWARD 250) 18-56 (HOW · all 18-56 (HOWARD 250)s on the register
- Registration
- N252K · registry record · serial 2596
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE APCHG FOR A LNDG, THE ACFT PITCHED UP, ROLLED INVERTED & IMPACTED THE TERRAIN TO THE LEFT OF THE RWY. NO PREIMPACTPART FAILURE/MALFUNCTION WAS FND; HOWEVER, AN INV REVEALED THE ACFT HAD BEEN LOADED WITH THE CENTER-OF-GRAVITY (CG) WELLBEHIND THE AFT LIMIT. THE ACFT HAD BEEN WEIGHED ON 9/8/84. LATER, ON 1/2/86, WEIGHT & BALANCE DATA HAD BEEN RECOMPUTED AFTER REMOVAL OF A RADAR & AN AUTOPLT, BUT AN ERROR HAD BEEN MADE DURING THE WEIGHT & BALANCE PREPARATION. SUBSEQUENTLY,THE ACFT WAS OPERATED IN A TAIL HEAVY CONDITION. WHETHER USING THE EXISTING OR THE CORRECT DATA, CALCULATIONS FOR THIS FLT SHOULD HAVE SHOWN THE CG WAS BEHIND THE AFT LIMIT. THE ELEV TRIM TAB WAS FND TRIMMED TO A FULL NOSE DOWN POSITION; 200 LBS OF BALLAST HAD BEEN INSTALLED IN THE VICINTY OF THE AFT CARGO DOOR. TESTS OF LUNG TISSUE SHOWED THE PLT & COPLT HAD ALCOHOL LVLS OF 0.044% & 0.171%, RESPECTIVELY. THE PLT'S URINE TESTED 0.035% FOR ALCOHOL. ALSO, PHENYLTOLOXAMINE, ACETAMINOPHEN & CHLORPHENIRAMINE (MEDICATIONS COMMONLY USED IN DECONGESTANTS/ANTIHISTAMINES) WERE DETECTED IN HIS URINE.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 9,766 hours in all; 276 in this make and model; 92 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,534 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, August 8, 1986; 34 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 22,500 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Wright R-1820-56A (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: LIT Little Rock AR at 11:00 am
- Runway 13, 5,200 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 10,000 ft; not recorded at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:52 am from TXK, 1 miles away
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.