Cessna 182Q accident near Sparta, New Jersey, August 1, 1987
On August 1, 1987 at about 6:10 pm local time, a Cessna 182Q, registered N735DS, was destroyed in an accident near Sparta, New Jersey. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 1, 1987 · about 6:10 pm local time
- Place
- Sparta, New Jersey
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182Q · all 182Qs on the register
- Registration
- N735DS · registry record · serial 18265347
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT WAS OBSERVED TO FLY NEAR POWER LINES, THEN ROLL INVERTED, CRASH & BURN IN A WOODED AREA. THE 4 OCCUPANTS RCVD MULTIPLE IMPACT INJURIES WHICH WERE FATAL. THE ACFT WAS DESTROYED BY THE IMPACT & POST CRASH FIRE. SVRL WITNESSES RPRTD THE ENG POWER WAS INTERMITTENT, BUT NO REASON WAS FND FOR THE RPRTD POWER LOSS. ALTHOUGH SOME WITNESSES ON THE GROUND THOUGHT THE ACFT STRUCK THE POWER LINES, AN AIRBORNE WITNESS (WHO SAW THE ACDNT) SAID IT DID HIT THE LINES. NO PHYSICAL EVIDENCE OF A POWER LINE STRIKE WAS FOUND. TOXICOLOGY CHECKS OF THE PLT SHOWED MEASURABLE LVLS OF ALCOHOL & BUTALBITAL. CHECKS OF HIS LIVER TISSUE AT 2 LABS SHOWED APRX 0.07% ALCOHOL, ALTHOUGH A 3RD LAB ONLY DETECTED ALCOHOL (0.05%) IN KIDNEY TISSUE. THE PLT'S WIFE SAID HE HAD USED FIORINAL, A PRESCRIPTION DRUG FOR HEADACHES. BUTALBITAL IS AN ACTIVE INGREDIENT OF FIORINAL & IS A BARBITURATE WITH SIDE EFFECTS OF DROWSINESS & LOSS OF ALERTNESS. ALSO, THE EFFECTS OF BUTALBITAL ARE ADDITIVE WITH THOSE OF ALCOHOL. ON 10/28/85 (DATE OF MED CERT), THE PLT RPRTD HE HAD 400 HRS OF FLT TIME.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 400 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 710 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 4, 1987; 2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,950 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-U (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 12N Andover NJ at 6:05 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 2:11 pm
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number NYC87FA215.