Cessna 421 N421TJ
17 February 2003 · Ferguson, Kentucky, United States · Fatal
Summary
On 17 February 2003 at about 01:02 local time, a Cessna 421 registered N421TJ, operated by Shalabh N. Agarwal, was involved in an accident near Ferguson, Kentucky, United States. 7 people were on board and 3 died, 4 were seriously injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 01:02
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Ferguson, Kentucky, United States
- Nearest airport
- Somerset-Pulaski County (SME)
- Coordinates
- 37.0731, -84.5842
- Aircraft
- Cessna 421
- Registration
- N421TJ
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 2
- Operator
- Shalabh N. Agarwal
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Executive/Corporate
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Griffith-Merril → Somerset
- Aircraft damage
- Destroyed
- Weather
- IMC
- Light
- Night
- NTSB number
- IAD03FA032
People
3 people died.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to follow the instrument approach procedure, which resulted in an early descent into trees and terrain. Factors included the low ceiling and the night lighting conditions.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The airplane joined the inbound course for the GPS instrument approach between the intermediate approach fix and the final approach fix, and maintained an altitude about 200 feet below the sector minimum. The last radar return revealed the airplane to be about 3/4 nautical miles beyond the final approach fix, approximately 1,000 feet left of course centerline. An initial tree strike was found about 1 nautical mile before the missed approach point, about 700 feet left of course centerline, at an elevation about 480 feet below the minimum decent altitude. Witnesses reported seeing the airplane flying at a "very low altitude" just prior to its impact with hilly terrain, and also described the sound of the airplane's engines as "really loud" and "a constant roar." Night instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. There was no evidence of mechanical malfunction.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Cessna 421 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 Mar 2003 | Cessna 421C | Humberside, United Kingdom | Air Support Aviation Services | Fatal | 1 |
| 15 Dec 2003 | Cessna 421C | Claremont, California, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 16 Feb 2003 | Cessna 421C | San Francisco, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 29 Oct 2003 | Cessna 421B | Kelso, California, United States | - | Fatal | 5 |
| 20 Sep 2003 | Cessna 421B | Driggs, Idaho, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 4 Jul 2003 | Cessna 421C | Sitka, Alaska, United States | - | Fatal | 5 |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 Nov 2003 | Beechcraft J35 | Somerset, Kentucky, United States | Mock Air | Fatal | 3 |
| 27 Apr 2003 | Starnes QUICKIE Q-200 | Henderson, Kentucky, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 30 Nov 2003 | Cessna C172R | Lexington, Kentucky, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 27 Mar 2003 | Bell BHT-47-G3B2A | Lexington, Kentucky, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 3 Dec 2003 | Barness PULSAR I | Bardstown, Kentucky, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 2 Sep 2003 | Fairchild DORNIER 328-300 | Hebron, Kentucky, United States | Atlantic Coast Airlines | Serious injuries | - |