# Accident 19981226033829A: Cessna 182P, Midland, TX, December 26, 1998 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: December 26, 1998, 14:22 local time - Place: Midland, TX - Airport: Midland International Airport - Damage: Destroyed - Phase of flight: Level Off Touchdown - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 32.0205° N, 102.0995° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=32.0205&lon=-102.0995&mi=10 - Aircraft: N182FE, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N182FE-2000-05-05) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Cessna 182P (registry code 2075816, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-182p) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA 182P - Reported engine: CONT O470S - People aboard: 3 - Fatal injuries: 3 - Pilot flight hours: 783 total, 468 in this make and model, 6 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW99FA055](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99FA055) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19981226033829A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. ACFT CRASHED WHILE ON FINAL APPROACH SHORT OF RWY 22. (.19)ON DECEMBER 26, 1998, AT 1422 CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, A CESSNA, 182P AIRPLANE, N182FE, OWNED AND OPERATED BY THE PILOT WAS DESTROYED WHEN IT IMPACTED TERRAIN DURING FINAL APPROACH FOR LANDING AT THE MIDLAND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT NEAR MIDLAND, TEXAS. THE INSTRUMENT RATED PRIVATE PILOT AND HIS TWO PASSENGERS SUSTAINED FATAL INJURIES. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED FOR THE TITLE 14 CFR PART 91 LOCAL PERSONAL FLIGHT WHICH ORIGINATED AT 1330. ACCORDING TO A WRITTEN STATEMENT PROVIDED BY THE CONTROL TOWER OPERATOR, N182FE, WAS CLEARED TO LAND ON RUNWAY 22. THE CONTROLLER MADE VISUAL CONTACT WITH THE AIRCRAFT ON "SHORT FINAL." THE CONTROLLER THEN MADE A VISUAL SCAN OF RUNWAY 22 AND THE REMAINDER OF THE AIRPORT. AS THE CONTROLLER WAS LOOKING FOR N182FE ON RUNWAY 22, GROUND CONTROL RECEIVED A CALL ADVISING THEM THE THE AIRCRAFT HAD CRASHED. DURING TELEPHONE INTERVIEWS CONDUCTED BY THE INVESTIGATOR-IN-CHARGE (IIC), WITNESSES STATED THAT THEY SAW THE AIRPLANE'S WINGS "TEETER SLIGHTLY" THEN THE AIRPLANE PITCHED APPROXIMATELY "70 DEGREES NOSE DOWN" AND IMPACT THE GROUND. THE WITNESSES ADDED THAT SUBSEQUENTLY, THE "TAIL," AFT OF THE BAGGAGE COMPARTMENT, "SEPARATED AS THE AIRPLANE NOSED OVER." THE FUSELAGE CAME TO REST INVERTED WITH THE EMPENNAGE LAYING ON THE BOTTOM SIDE OF THE FUSELAGE. THE AIRCRAFT WRECKAGE WAS LOCATED ALONG THE EXTENDED CENTERLINE OF RUNWAY 22, APPROXIMATELY 473 FEET FROM THE THRESHOLD OF THE RUNWAY. THERE WAS A SINGLE GROUND SCAR APPROXIMATELY FOUR FEET IN LENGTH WHICH TERMINATED AT THE RESTING PLACE OF THE WRECKAGE. THE FUSELAGE WAS ON A RESTING HEADNG OF 45 DEGREES MAGNETIC. NO MECHANICAL ANOMALIES WERE FOUND DURING THE FIELD PROTION OF THE INVESTIGATION. THE WEATHER AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT WAS CLEAR WITH A VISIBILITY OF 10 STATUTE MILES AND THE WIND WAS FROM 220 DEGREES AT 18 KNOTS. EXAMINATION OF THE PILOT LOGBOOKS REVEALED THAT THE PILOT HAD RECORDED 783 TOTAL FLIGHT HOURS, OF WHICH 468 WERE IN THE SAME MAKE AND MODEL AS THE ACCIDENT AIRPLANE. (.4) THE AIRPLANE STALLED ON FINAL APPROACH AND IMPACTED THE GROUND SHORT OF THE RUNWAY THRESHOLD ALONG THE EXTENDED CENTERLINE OF THE RUNWAY. ACCORDING TO ONE WITNESS, THE AIRPLANE PITCHED `UP AND THEN BACK DOWN AND THE WINGS STARTED TO ROCK BACK AND FORTH SOME.' SUBSEQUENTLY, THE NOSE OF THE AIRPLANE PITCHED DOWN ABOUT 70 DEGREES AND IMPACTED THE GROUND. TWO OTHER WITNESSES SAW THE AIRPLANE'S WINGS `TEETER SLIGHTLY' THEN THE AIRPLANE PITCHED 70 DEGREES NOSE LOW AND IMPACTED THE GROUND. FLIGHT CONTROL CONTINUITY WAS CONFIRMED AT THE ACCIDENT SITE. NO ANOMALIES WERE FOUND DURING THE TESTING OF THE ENGINE, AUTOPILOT, AND ELECTRICAL TRIM SYSTEM THAT WOULD HAVE PREVENTED NORMAL OPERATION PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT. ## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB FTW99FA055](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99FA055), Dec 26, 1998: Cessna 182P (N182FE), Midland, TX, destroyed, 3 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed, resulting in an inadvertent stall. From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.