Cessna 182 accident near Garnett, Kansas, December 3, 1988
On December 3, 1988 at about 10:45 pm local time, a Cessna 182, registered N5851B, was substantially damaged in an accident near Garnett, Kansas (Garnett airport). It was an other work-use flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. 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 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 3, 1988 · about 10:45 pm local time · cases in 1988
- Place
- Garnett, Kansas · Garnett · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182 · all 182s on the register
- Registration
- N5851B · no longer on the register · serial 33851
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Other work-use flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
HAVING JUST MADE A PARACHUTIST'S DROP, DURING A SKY DIVING OPERATION, THE PRIVATE PILOT SPIRALED DOWN FROM ALTITUDE TO LAND, BUT HAD TO EXTEND HIS PATTERN TO ALLOW A DEPARTING ACFT TO LEAVE. DURING A LONG FINAL APPROACH, THE ENGINE FAILED AND AN EMERGENCY LANDING WAS ATTEMPTED IN A SOFT PLOWED FARM FIELD. THE ACFT, ON LANDING, DUG IN IT'S NOSE WHEEL AND TURNED OVER. NO MECHANICAL OR FUEL IRREGULARITIES WERE DISCOVERED DURING THE POST ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION AND METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS WERE FAVORABLE FOR CARBURETOR ICING ACCORDING TO THE 'ICING PROBABLILITY 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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 193 hours in all; 56 in this make and model; 16 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 132 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,860 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 8, 1988; 46 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-L (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Midamerican Sky Sports INC.
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 1, 2,400 ft by 45 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 13 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:52 pm from CNU, 40 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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N5851B: not on the register today · the record of its deregistration
- Cessna 182 Skylane 11,834 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,684 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Continental O-470-L 19 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Garnett Municipal · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Kansas 1,146 since 1982 · 149 in the last ten years
- Kansas 5,731 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/MKC89LA034.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.