Cessna 207 accident near Hardwick, Minnesota, April 4, 1988
On April 4, 1988 at about 11:20 pm local time, a Cessna 207, registered N207CA, was destroyed in an accident near Hardwick, Minnesota. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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
- April 4, 1988 · about 11:20 pm local time
- Place
- Hardwick, Minnesota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 207 · all 207s on the register
- Registration
- N207CA · registry record · serial 2070097
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WITNESSES OBSERVED THE AIRCRAFT FOR APRX 8 MINUTES IN ERRATIC DIVING, CLIMBING, AND STEEP-TURNING MANEUVERS WHICH CULMINATED IN A 12 DEGREE DESCENT TO THE GROUND. THE SOUND OF THE ENG WAS HEARD THROUGHOUT THE SEQUENCE AND OTHER EVIDENCE INDICATED ENGINE POWER AT IMPACT. THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK TREES, A FARM BLDG, FARM EQUIPMENT, AND A VEHICLE, THEN BURST INTO FLAMES. THE WRECKAGE WAS STREWN ALONG A 320 FT PATH. NO EVIDENCE OF FLIGHT CONTROL MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND. THE PLT CLAIMED AN UPSET STOMACH BEFORE THE FLT. THE PILOT'S SPEECH WAS SLURRED IN RADIO TRANSMISSIONS. THE PLT DID NOT RESPOND TO THE LAST RADIO CALL FROM SIOUX FALLS TOWER. NO EMERGENCY OR DISTRESS CALLS WERE RECEIVED FROM THE PILOT. THE POSTMORTEM EXAM OF THE PLT DID NOT IDENTIFY SPECIFIC IMPAIRMENT BUT WAS LIMITED DUE TO THE SEVERITY OF THE IMPACT AND FIRE DAMAGE.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,000 hours in all; 260 in this make and model; 42 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 12,000 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-F (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Northland Air Freight
The flight
- Departed from: FSD Sioux Falls SD at 10:58 pm
- Destination: MIC Crystal MN
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 25,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:50 pm from FSD, 26 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
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.