Lockheed 18-56 accident near Oneonta, New York, March 17, 1984
On March 17, 1984 at about 4:30 am local time, a Lockheed 18-56, registered N77777, was destroyed in an accident near Oneonta, New York (Oneonta airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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
- March 17, 1984 · about 4:30 am local time
- Place
- Oneonta, New York · Oneonta · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Lockheed 18-56 · all 18-56s on the register
- Registration
- N77777 · no longer on the register · serial 22500
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT APRX 2330 EST, WITNESSES NEAR THE CRASH SITE HEARD AN ACFT, & SHORTLY THEREAFTER, THEY SAW A FLASH. ONE OF THEM, WHO WAS DRIVING A CAR, WENT BACK TO THE AREA THE NEXT DAY & FOUND THE ACFT WRECKAGE. THE ACFT HAD CRASHED & BURNED ABOUT 1 MI FROM THE APCH END OF RWY 24. WRECKAGE WAS STREWN ALONG AN AREA OF ABOUT 250 FT LONG & WAS ORIENTED ON A HEADING OF 230 DEG. THE ACFT WAS DESCENDING IN AN ESTIMATE 40 DEG DIVE WHEN IT HIT THE GROUND. AN EXAM OF THE WRECKAGE DID NOT DISCLOSE ANY EVIDENCE OF A MALFUNCTION. ABOUT 3500 LBS OF MARIJUANA WAS FOUND IN THE WRECKAGE. THE 2010 WX AT THE ARPT WAS: INDEFINITE 500 FT OBSCURATION, VISIBILITY 1 1/4 MI WITH RAIN & LIGHT FOG, TEMP 33 DEG, WIND FROM 280 DEG AT 5 KTS. ANOTHER PLT HAD LANDED AT 2015. HE SAID HIS ACFT HAD ACCUMULATED A TRACE OF RIME ICE. AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT, WITNESSES SAID THE ROADS WERE LIGHTLY COVERED WITH ICE SNOW.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 13,000 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 22,500 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Wright GR-1820 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 3,400 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 005° at 21 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded at 500 ft
- Temperature: 5°F (-15°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:30 am from BGM
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.