Cessna 441 N44776

Summary

On 7 February 2021 at about 22:47 local time, a Cessna 441 registered N44776 was involved in an accident near Belvidere, Tennessee, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

7 February 2021 at 22:47

Classification

Accident

Location

Belvidere, Tennessee, United States

Nearest airport

Winchester Muni (BGF)

Coordinates

35.0869, -86.0720

Aircraft

Cessna 441

Registration

N44776

Category

Airplane

Year built

1978

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Thomasville → Winchester

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA21LA124

2 people died.

The pilot’s failure to follow the published instrument approach procedure by prematurely descending the airplane below the final approach fix altitude to fly under the low ceiling conditions, which resulted in controlled flight into terrain.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was conducting a cross-country flight and was beginning an instrument flight rules approach from the south. Weather conditions at the destination airport included a ceiling between 800 and 1,000 ft and light rime icing conditions in clouds; the pilot was aware of these conditions. Elevated, wooded terrain existed along the final approach course. Radar and automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast data revealed that the airplane crossed the intermediate approach fix at the correct altitude; however, the pilot descended the airplane below the final approach fix altitude about 4 miles before the fix. The airplane continued in a gradual descent until radar contact was lost. No distress calls were received from the airplane before the accident. The airplane crashed on a north-northwesterly heading about 5 miles south of the runway threshold. The elevation at the accident site was about 1,880 ft, which was about 900 ft higher than the airport elevation. Postaccident examination of the airframe, engines, and propellers revealed no evidence of a pre-existing mechanical failure or anomaly that would have precluded normal operation. Because of the weather conditions at the time of the final approach, the pilot likely attempted to fly the airplane under the weather to visually acquire the runway. The terrain along the final approach course would have been obscured in low clouds at the time, resulting in controlled flight into terrain.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.