Cessna 421C accident near Mccook, Nebraska, January 26, 1994
On January 26, 1994 at about 9:15 pm local time, a Cessna 421C, registered N5468G, was destroyed in an accident near Mccook, Nebraska (Mccook Muni airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were killed, 3 people were seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
IMPROPER IN-FLIGHT PLANNING/DECISION BY THE PILOT, AND THE ACCUMULATION OF AIRFRAME ICE, WHICH RESULTED IN AN INADVERTENT STALL. FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH THE ACCIDENT WERE: PARTIAL FAILURE OF BOTH ALTERNATORS, WHICH RESULTED IN A SUBSEQUENT ELECTRICAL SYSTEM FAILURE AND AN INOPERATIVE ANTI-ICE/DE-ICE SYSTEM, ADVERSE WEATHER (ICING) CONDITIONS, AND AIRFRAME (WING) ICE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 26, 1994 · about 9:15 pm local time
- Place
- Mccook, Nebraska · Mccook Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed, 3 people were seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 421C · all 421Cs on the register
- Registration
- N5468G · no longer on the register · serial 421C-0215
- 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
THE PART 135 ON-DEMAND AIR TAXI FLIGHT DEPARTED DENVER, COLORADO, WITH A DESTINATION OF COLUMBUS, NEBRASKA. WEATHER FORECASTS WERE FOR ICING CONDITIONS ALONG THE ENTIRE ROUTE OF FLIGHT. WHILE EN ROUTE, ATC ADVISED THE PILOT OF REPORTED ICING AHEAD. THE PILOT WAS CLEARED TO CLIMB TO 19,000 FEET TO GET ON TOP OF THE CLOUDS. THE PILOT REPORTED 'SOME ALTERNATOR PROBLEMS,' AND REQUESTED TO DIVERT TO NORTH PLATTE, NEBRASKA. HE THEN ELECTED TO DIVERT TO MCCOOK, NEBRASKA, DUE TO THE WEATHER AT NORTH PLATTE. ATC LOST COMMUNICATION WITH THE PILOT DURING THE DIVERSION. WITNESSES REPORTED THE AIRPLANE CIRCLED THE MCCOOK AIRPORT TWICE. ACCORDING TO THEM, THE AIRPLANE ENTERED A BANK OF ABOUT 45 DEG, THEN STALLED. SUBSEQUENTLY, IT TRAVELED ABOUT 190 FEET THROUGH A STAND OF TREES BEFORE COMING TO REST. WITNESSES REPORTED THE AIRPLANE WAS COVERED WITH ICE. ONE-HALF INCH OF MIXED ICE WAS FOUND ON A PIECE OF WINDSHIELD. BOTH ALTERNATORS HAD ONE PHASE IN THE STATOR WINDING SHORTED.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,550 hours in all; 66 in this make and model; 84 in the last 90 days; 28 in the last 30 days; 2,532 as pilot in command; 1,600 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,837 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 29, 1993; 48 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,450 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental GTSIO-520-L (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: DEN Denver CO at 7:44 pm
- Destination: OLU Columbus NE
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 1.5 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,000 ft; not recorded at 1,000 ft
- Temperature: 23°F (-5°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:20 pm from MCK
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 3 | 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.
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.