# Accident 19981231042439A: Cessna 177, Marietta, OK, December 31, 1998 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: December 31, 1998, 18:30 local time - Place: Marietta, OK - Airport: Mcgehee Catfish Restaurant - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Final Approach - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 33.9296° N, 97.1191° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.9296&lon=-97.1191&mi=10 - Aircraft: N30246, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N30246-2002-04-01) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Cessna 177 (registry code 2073704, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-177) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Lycoming 0-320 series (registry code 41508, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA 177 - Reported engine: LYC O320E2D - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 107 total, 13 in this make and model, 13 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW99LA057](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99LA057) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19981231042439A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (.19)ON DECEMER 31, 1998, AT 1835 CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, A CESSNA 177 AIRPLANE, WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED WHEN IT IMPACTED TERRAIN DURING FINAL APPROACH TO THE MCGEHEE CATFISH RESTAURANT AIRPORT, MARIETTA, OKLAHOMA. THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PRIVATE PILOT, WHO WAS THE OWNER AND OPERATOR OF THE AIRPLANE, AND THREE PASSENGERS RECEIVED MINOR INJURIES. NIGHT VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN FILED FOR THE TITLE 14 CFR PART 91 PERSONAL FLIGHT. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM THE BOWIE MUNICIPAL AIRPORT, BOWIE, TEXAS, AT 1800. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT WHILE ON A VFR APPROACH TO RUNWAY 35 (TURF COVERED), THE GREEN RUNWAY THRESHOLD LIGHTS DISAPPEARED FROM HIS VIEW. HE THEN NOTICED TREE LIMBS CLOSE TO THE LEFT SIDE OF THE AIRPLANE AND INITIATED A GO-AROUND. THE LEFT WING OF THE AIRPLANE CONTACTED A TREE LOCATED 30 FEET PRIOR TO THE APPROACH END OF THE RUNWAY. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED THE RUNWAY AND SLID APPROXIMATELY 75 FEET, COMING TO REST UPRIGHT. AN FAA INSPECTOR EXAMINED THE AIRPLANE AND REPORTED THAT THE CABIN AREA WAS CRUSHED, THE ENGINE FIREWALL WAS DISPLACED, AND THE WING SPARS WERE DAMAGED. (.4) THE AIRPLANE CONTACTED TREE BRANCHES WHILE O N FINAL APPROACH TO LAND AT A PRIVATE TURF COVERED AIRPORT DURING DARK NIGHT LIGHT CONDITIONS. THE PILOT FLEW OVER THE 2,450 FOOT RUNWAY AND VERIFIED THAT THE RUNWAY WAS FREE OF OBSTRUCTIONS, AND THEN COMMITTED TO LAND. WHILE ON FINAL APPRAOCH HE OBSERVED ALL OF THE RUNWAY LIGHTS AND NO OBSTRUCTIONS. AS THE PILOT OBSERVED THE RUNWAY THRESHOLD LIGHTS 'JUST BEGINNING TO DISAPPEAR BENEATH THE NOSE OF THE AIRCRAFT,' HE NOTICED TREE BRANCHES 'TO THE FRONT OF AND TO THE LEFT' OF THE APPROACH PATH, AND INITIATED A GO-AROUND. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE AIRPLANE'S LEFT WING CONTACTED THE TREE BRANCHES, AND THE AIRPLANE TURNED TO THE LEFT. THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED THE GROUND, SLID 75 FEET, AND CAME TO REST UPRIGHT. REMARKS IN THE AIRPORT/FACILITIES DIRECTORY FOR THE AIRPORT STATES; RUNWAY 35 TREES; WHILE LANDING AT NIGHT, TREES OFF BOTH RUNWAY ENDS. (-23) THE AIRCRAFT AND OCCUPANTS DEPARTED BOWIE, TEXAS, AT APPROXIMATELY 5:30 P.M., ENROUTE TO MARIETTA, OKLAHOMA. DURING APPROACH TO MCGEHEE RESTAURANT, MARIETTA, OK, PILOT UNDERSHOT RUNWAY, THEREBY CLIPPING TOPS OF TREES NEAR THE SOUTH END OF RUNWAY. THE AIRCRAFT WAS THEN FORCED TO THE GROUND DEST ROYING THE AIRCRAFT ON IMPACT. THE PILOT STATED THAT HE APPLIED POWER WHEN HE REALIZED HE WAS TOO LOW, BUT THE AIRCRAFT DID NOT RESPOND IN ENOUGH TIME TO AVOID THE TREE TOPS. ## 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 FTW99LA057](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99LA057), Jan 1, 1999: Cessna 177 (N30246), Marietta, OK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The failure of the pilot-in-command to maintain clearance with terrain. Factors were the short runway and the dark night light condition. 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.