Cessna 441 accident near Vestavia Hills, Alabama, December 10, 2003
On December 10, 2003 at about 8:20 pm local time, a Cessna 441, registered N441W, was destroyed in an accident near Vestavia Hills, Alabama (Birmingham International airport). It was an executive or corporate flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed during climb in icing conditions, which resulted in an inadvertent stall / spin of the airplane and subsequent uncontrolled descent and collision with terrain. A factor was the accumulation of airframe ice.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 10, 2003 · about 8:20 pm local time
- Place
- Vestavia Hills, Alabama · Birmingham International · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 441 · all 441s on the register
- Registration
- N441W · no longer on the register · serial 441-0181
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Executive or corporate flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight was climbing from 5,000 to 10,000 feet and the pilot obtained a maximum altitude of 6,300 feet. The airplane then began to lose altitude and deviate off course. The pilot declared a mayday and reported the airplane was in a spin. Several witnesses near the accident site reported hearing airplane engine noises and seeing the airplane descend from the clouds in a nose-down spiral to the ground. Two AIRMETs were valid at the time of the accident and included the accident location: "AIRMET TANGO update 3 for turbulence ... . Occasional moderate turbulence below a flight level of 18,000 feet due to wind shear ... ." "AIRMET ZULU update 2 for ice and freezing level ... . Occasional moderate rime and/or mixed icing in clouds and precipitation below 8,000 feet." Two pilots who departed in separate Beech 200 airplanes about the time of the accident airplane stated they encountered "moderate rime" icing between 5,000 and 6,000 feet, and one pilot reported instrument metrological conditions and light turbulence between 1,800 to 6,000 feet. Examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of airframe or engine malfunction. The de-ice ejector flow control valves for the left wing, right wing, and empennage pneumatic boots were removed for examination, and all valves functioned when power was supplied.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 8,378 hours in all; 424 in this make and model; 4,582 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: July 5, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,933 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 30, 2003; 26.7 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 9,925 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Alliedsignal TPE331-10N (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Alliedsignal TPE331-10N (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: KBHM Birmingham AL at 8:12 pm
- Destination: KVNC Venice FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 24, 10,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 13 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,200 ft
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.77 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from KBHM, 9 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N441W the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.