Cessna 170A accident near Mccrory, Arkansas, November 19, 1988
On November 19, 1988 at about 6:15 pm local time, a Cessna 170A, registered N170KM, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mccrory, Arkansas. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 19, 1988 · about 6:15 pm local time · cases in 1988
- Place
- Mccrory, Arkansas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 170A · all 170As on the register
- Registration
- N170KM · registry record · serial 19166
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE STUDENT PILOT AND PASSENGER SAID AFTER ABOUT 10 MINUTES OF LOCAL FLIGHT, THEY EXPERIENCED A PARTIAL POWER LOSS. AN EMERGENCY LDG WAS ATTEMPTED ON A NEAR BY RURAL STRIP, BUT THE PLT SAID HE HAD EXCESS AIRSPEED AND WAS UNABLE TO LAND SUCCESSFULLY. THE ENGINE THEN FAILED COMPLETELY AND HE MADE A FORCED LDG. HE STRUCK A CANAL DITCH, THEN CAREENED INTO A RICE FIELD, CAUSING SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE TO THE ACFT. POST ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED NO MALFUNCTION OF THE ENGINE OR COMPONENTS, NOR EVIDENCE OF FUEL STARVATION OR CONTAMINATION. WEATHER CONDITIONS AT THE TIME WERE 600 FEET BROKEN, 2 1/2 TO 5 MILES VISIBILTY WITH LIGHT RAIN AND FOG. TEMPERATURE WAS 52 AND THE DEW POINT WAS 51 DEGREES F. METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS WERE CONDUCIVE FOR THE PROBABILITY OF CARBURETOR ICING ACCORDING TO THE 'ICING PROBABLILTY CHARTS'.
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: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 134 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 11, 1988
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C-145-2 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: M60 Augusta AR at 6:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 600 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:48 pm from LIT, 60 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
Other NTSB records under N170KM the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N170KM on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 170 2,085 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,677 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Continental C-145-2 11 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Woodruff County · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Arkansas 1,582 since 1982 · 176 in the last ten years
- Arkansas 3,493 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N170KM 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/MKC89LA030.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.