Lake LA-4-200 accident near Int'L Falls, Minnesota, January 4, 1995
On January 4, 1995 at about 5:15 pm local time, a Lake LA-4-200, registered CFGDZ, was substantially damaged in an accident near Int'L Falls, Minnesota. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
engine oil exhaustion due to a frozen crankcase breather line and noncompliance with an airworthiness directive.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 4, 1995 · about 5:15 pm local time
- Place
- Int'L Falls, Minnesota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Lake LA-4-200 · all LA-4-200s on the register
- Registration
- CFGDZ · no longer on the register · serial 568
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT REPORTED THAT HE EXPERIENCED LOW OIL TEMPERATURE AND PRESSURE ABOUT TEN MINUTES AFTER TAKEOFF. HE TURNED AROUND TO RETURN TO INTERNATIONAL FALLS. ABOUT FIVE MINUTES LATER, THE ENGINE 'SHUDDERED' AND LOST POWER. HE EXECUTED A FORCED LANDING IN A SWAMPY AREA. INVESTIGATION REVEALED THE CRANKCASE BREATHER TUBE WAS SOLIDLY BLOCKED WITH ICE AND OIL WAS EXPELLED THROUGH THE FRONT SEAL. AN AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVE ADDRESSING THIS ISSUE HAD NOT BEEN COMPLIED WITH.
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, foreign licence
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea
- Flight time: 4,500 hours in all; 200 in this make and model; 10 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 750 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 30, 1994; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,600 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: LSE La Crosse WI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: -2°F (-19°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:05 pm from INL, 8 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.