Cessna 402A accident near Walla Walla, Washington, March 17, 1987
On March 17, 1987 at about 5:00 pm local time, a Cessna 402A, registered N4549Q, was substantially damaged in an accident near Walla Walla, Washington (Walla Walla City County 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 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, 1987 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- Walla Walla, Washington · Walla Walla City County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 402A · all 402As on the register
- Registration
- N4549Q · no longer on the register · serial 402A0049
- 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
DURING LNDG ROLL THE RT MAIN LNDG GEAR OF THE CESSNA 402A COLLAPSED. VISUAL INSPECTION OF THE BELL CRANK ASSEMBLY REVEALED FRACTURE SURFACES SIMILAR TO THOSE OF INSTANTANEOUS OVERLOAD.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,425 hours in all; 3,450 in this make and model; 410 in the last 90 days; 5,240 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,520 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 1, 1987
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-E (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Richardson Aviation, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: PSC Pasco WA at 4:35 pm
- Destination: ALW Walla Walla WA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 20, 7,186 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 14 knots
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,800 ft; clear
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:53 pm from ALW
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 N4549Q 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.