Cessna P206B accident near Taylorville, Illinois, October 24, 2004
On October 24, 2004 at about 7:40 pm local time, a Cessna P206B, registered N8619Z, was destroyed in an accident near Taylorville, Illinois (Taylorville Muni airport). It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed and 1 person had minor injuries; 4 others were unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Aircraft control not possible by the pilot following a premature deployment of a parachute as a parachutist exited the jump airplane during cruise flight. The inverted spin encountered by the pilot was an additional cause.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 24, 2004 · about 7:40 pm local time
- Place
- Taylorville, Illinois · Taylorville Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person had minor injuries; 4 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna P206B · all P206Bs on the register
- Registration
- N8619Z · no longer on the register · serial 0419
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane entered an inverted spin during a skydiving operation when a parachutist's parachute deployed while exiting the airplane at 10,500 feet mean sea level. The parachute became entangled around the right hand landing gear and the parachutist could not be freed. The pilot, who was wearing a parachute, and the remaining parachutists jumped from the airplane. The airplane subsequently impacted a flat field, inverted, and in uncontrolled flight. The entangled parachutist received fatal injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 2,900 hours in all; 1,700 in this make and model; 30 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 2,850 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 13, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,636 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 3, 2004; 90 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TAZ Taylorville IL at 7:20 pm
- Destination: TAZ
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.90 inHg
- Observation at 6:54 pm from SPI, 25 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 4 |
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.
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.