- Date
- October 11, 2006, 14:30 local (18:30 UTC)
- Place
- Belhaven, NC
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N91181Cessna 188B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 26, 2007
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Greensboro FSDO
- FAA report
- 20061011023819A
- Case key
- 64874
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to compensate for wind conditions and maintain adequate airspeed, which resulted in an inadvertent stall and subsequent in-flight collision with terrain.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
According to the pilot, during takeoff from a grass airstrip, the airplane stalled on initial climb and crashed in a cotton field. He was carrying 150 gallons of chemicals. The pilot stated that, upon exiting the airplane, he observed that the wind had switched from a headwind to a tailwind. The pilot stated that he should have erected a windsock or should have taken on a lighter load of chemicals. He also said that there were no mechanical problems noted with the airplane prior to the accident. Substantial damage occurred to both wings, the propeller, the fuselage, and the vertical and horizontal stabilizers. According to an FAA Inspector, the pilot was engaged in aerial application operations without an agricultural operator certificate.
Factual narrative
On October 11, 2006, at 1430 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 188B, N91181, registered to a private individual and operating as a 14 CFR Part 137 aerial application flight, crashed in a cotton field shortly after takeoff in Belhaven, North Carolina. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The airplane received substantial damage. The airline transport rated-pilot reported no injuries. The flight was originating at the time of the accident.According to the pilot, during takeoff from a grass airstrip, the airplane stalled on initial climb and crashed in a cotton field. He was carrying 150 gallons of chemicals. The pilot stated that, upon exiting the airplane, he observed that the wind had switched from a headwind to a tailwind. The pilot stated that he should have erected a windsock or should have taken on a lighter load of chemicals. He also said that there were no mechanical problems noted with the airplane prior to the accident. Substantial damage occurred to both wings, the propeller, the fuselage, and the vertical and horizontal stabilizers.
According to an FAA Inspector, the pilot was engaged in aerial application operations without an agricultural operator certificate.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N91181
- Reported as
- Cessna 188B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18802024
- Airframe hours
- 5,337
- Engine
- Continental IO-520-D, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- William J. Brinkley, doing business as Western Carolina AG AIR
- Registered owner
- William J. Brinkley
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 1, 2006 · 279 hours before
- Departed
- Belhaven, NC
- Destination
- Belhaven, NC
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 38
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- January 1, 2006
- Seat
- Single
- Flight hours
- 4,925 total · 2,980 in this make and model · 4,839 as pilot in command · 230 in the last 90 days · 125 in the last 30 days · 10 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 0° at 0 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 66 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.84 inHg
- Observed at
- OCW
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.