Cessna A188B accident near Medford, Oregon, February 2, 1983
On February 2, 1983 at about 1:00 am local time, a Cessna A188B, registered N4784Q, was destroyed in an accident near Medford, Oregon (Jackson County airport). It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 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 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 2, 1983 · about 1:00 am local time
- Place
- Medford, Oregon · Jackson County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A188B · all A188Bs on the register
- Registration
- N4784Q · no longer on the register · serial 18802526T
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT COLLIDED WITH A TREE DURING AERIAL APPLICATION OPERATIONS. THE PILOT STATED THAT THERE WAS A POWERLINE AT ONE END OF THE ORCHARD HE WAS SPRAYING AND A ROW OF LEAFLESS TREES AT THE OTHER. ONE OF THE TALLER BOUNDARY TREES WAS OVERLOOKED BY THE PILOT AND THE ACFT HIT IT. THE COLLISION PUNCHED A HOLE IN THE OIL COOLER AND FORCED THE PILOT TO MAKE AN OFF AIRPORT LANDING.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 1,500 in this make and model; 300 in the last 90 days; 70 in the last 30 days; 2,057 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (expired)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,241 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 11, 1983; 11 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,300 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Pacific Air Research, INC.
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:00 am from MFR, 3 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.
Other NTSB records under N4784Q the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.