Cessna 401 accident near Chicago, Illinois, March 15, 1984
On March 15, 1984 at about 4:30 am local time, a Cessna 401, registered N777CS, was substantially damaged in an accident near Chicago, Illinois (Midway airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 15, 1984 · about 4:30 am local time
- Place
- Chicago, Illinois · Midway · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 401 · all 401s on the register
- Registration
- N777CS · registry record · serial 4010152
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFTS LEFT MAIN GEAR COLLAPSED DURING THE LANDING ROLL. INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE BOLT ON THE TOP PORTION OF THE LH BELLCRANK ASSEMBLY WAS SHEARED OFF. ONE OF THE TANGS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE BELLCRANK WAS ALSO BROKEN. WHEN EXAMINED UNDER A 10 POWER MICROSCOPE THE FRACTURED REVEALED INSTANTANEOUS OVERLOAD CHARACTERISTICS.
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,326 hours in all; 436 in this make and model; 143 in the last 90 days; 8,219 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,855 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 6, 1984; 11 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-E (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MSN Madison WI at 3:30 am
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 13R, 6,519 ft by 175 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 170° at 14 knots, gusting 19
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 600 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 34°F (1°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:30 am from MDW
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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 N777CS 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.