Cessna 177XP accident near Camden, Arkansas, November 23, 1986
On November 23, 1986, a Cessna 177XP, registered N736UF, was substantially damaged in an accident near Camden, Arkansas (Harrell airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. 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
- November 23, 1986
- Place
- Camden, Arkansas · Harrell · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 177XP · all 177XPs on the register
- Registration
- N736UF · registry record · serial R1722788
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT STATED HE WAS ON APPROACH DURING IMC AND HAD THE AIRPORT IN SIGHT WHEN HE FLEW INTO ANOTHER CLOUD AND HAD STARTED A MISSED APPROACH WHEN HE COLLIDED WITH A TREE. HE COMPLETED THE MISSED APPROACH AND DIVERTED TO MONROE, LA.
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: 3,664 hours in all; 71 in this make and model; 17 in the last 90 days; 3,481 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 900 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ADS Dallas TX at 11:00 pm
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 18, 6,501 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 140° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.