Cessna 404 accident near Big Rapids, Michigan, December 17, 1993
On December 17, 1993 at about 12:35 pm local time, a Cessna 404, registered N8919G, was substantially damaged in an accident near Big Rapids, Michigan (Roben-Hood airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT'S DESCENT BELOW THE MINIMUM DESCENT ALTITUDE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 17, 1993 · about 12:35 pm local time
- Place
- Big Rapids, Michigan · Roben-Hood · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 404 · all 404s on the register
- Registration
- N8919G · no longer on the register · serial 404-0098
- 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
EN ROUTE THE PILOT LEARNED THAT HIS DESTINATION VOR WAS OUT OF SERVICE. HOWEVER, AS HE APPROACHED THE VOR, IT WAS TURNED ON SO HE COULD SHOOT THE APPROACH. CONCERNED THAT THE VOR WOULD ONLY BE ON FOR A SHORT TIME, THE PILOT 'HURRIED THE APPROACH FROM THAT MOMENT ON.' DURING THE APPROACH THE AIRPLANE STRUCK WHAT THE PILOT THOUGHT WERE BIRDS. AFTER LANDING, HE EXAMINED THE AIRPLANE FOR DAMAGE AND FOUND DEBRIS FROM A TREE STRIKE.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,000 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 10,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,000 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental GTISO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Superior Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: LAN Lansing MI at 12:00 pm
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Wind: from 120° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 4 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 900 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 36°F (2°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:50 pm from MKG, 47 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.
Other NTSB records under N8919G 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.