Cessna 402B TS accident near Tonopah, Nevada, December 19, 1984
On December 19, 1984 at about 12:00 pm local time, a Cessna 402B TS, registered N51SA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Tonopah, Nevada (Tonopath airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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
- December 19, 1984 · about 12:00 pm local time · cases in 1984
- Place
- Tonopah, Nevada · Tonopath · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 402B TS · all 402B TSs on the register
- Registration
- N51SA · registry record · serial 502B0339
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE CRUISING AT 1600 FT MSL ON TOP OF CLOUDS, A LOSS OF POWER IN THE LEFT ENG OCCURRED. THE PLT ATTEMPTED TO RESTART THE ENG, BUT WAS UNABLE. HE FEATHER THE ENG WHILE DIVERTING TO TONOPATH, NV. THE ACFT WOULD NOT MAINTAIN ALT USING 1 ENG. THE LAST REPORTED WX AT TONOPAH WAS 400 FT BROKEN, 800 FT OVERCAST. OVER TONOPAH, THE PLT MADE A DESCENDING SPIRAL IN IMC. DURING THE DESCENT, ICING CONDITIONS WERE ENCOUNTERED. THE ACFT BROKE OUT OF THE CLOUDS AT ABOUT 400 FT AGL (AT NIGHT), BUT THE PLT COULD NOT SEE THE ARPT. HE STILL COULD NOT MAINTAIN ALT & MADE A FORCED LANDING WITH THE GEAR RETRACTED. AN EXAM OF THE LEFT ENG REVEALED NO PREIMPACT FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION. AN EXAM OF THE LEFT FUEL SELECTOR BOWL REVEALED SIGNS OF MICROBIOLOGICAL GROWTH. ALSO, THERE WAS HEAVY MICROBIOLOGICAL GROWTH ON THE LEFT FUEL FILTER. WATER & MICROBIOLOGICAL GROWTH WERE FOUND IN THE LEFT FUEL TANK. STC SA117NW REQUIRED THE ADDITION OF ANTI-ICING & ANTI-BIOLOGICAL ADDITIVES TO THE FUEL. NO ADDIVTUE WAS USED AT THE PREVIOUS REFUELING.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,900 hours in all; 60 in this make and model; 60 in the last 90 days; 1,550 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,400 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 1, 1984; 60 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,525 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Allison 250C20B-17 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Hawkins Air
The flight
- Departed from: LAS Las Vegas NV at 10:30 am
- Destination: RNO Reno NV
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 400 ft; clear
- Temperature: 27°F (-3°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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 N51SA 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
- N51SA on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 402 174 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,684 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Allison 250C20B-17 530 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Tonopah Airport · nearest airport
- Harry Reid International · departed from
- Reno/Tahoe International · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in Nevada 1,294 since 1982 · 223 in the last ten years
- Nevada 4,583 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N51SA 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/SEA85LA032.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.