- Date
- August 14, 1982, 19:00 local (Aug 15, 1982, 00:00 UTC)
- Place
- Grand Bay, AL
- Injuries
- 1 minor; on the ground: 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Taxi
- Aircraft
- N42GCCessna 180
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 14, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19820814038859A
- Case key
- 70866
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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
Reportedly, the pilot was preparing to fly the aircraft, but the battery was dead, so he hand propped the engine to start it. According to the pilot's father, the aircraft was left unattended with the engine operating at idle speed. The pilot reported that he was running the engine to check for oil leaks when a bystander reached in the cockpit and advanced the throttle enough to move the aircraft. The aircraft then hit a fence and a ditch and nosed over. Reportedly, the bystander disappeared from the scene. On the same day of the accident, a person was admitted to a nearby hospital with minor injuries. The patient reported that his lower right leg was run over by an aircraft wheel and he received abrasions to the left arm from a propeller strike.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N42GC
- Reported as
- Cessna 180
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 31732
- Airframe hours
- 5,567
- Engine
- Continental O-470-J, 225 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- John E. Cutts Jr.
- Registered owner
- Robert Steenbock
- Departed
- Grand Bay, AL
- Destination
- Grand Bay, AL
- Flight plan
- Unknown
- Airport
- Hatchett Field
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
- 35
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 9,500 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 194 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.