Cessna 140 accident near Big Lake, Minnesota, March 29, 1997
On March 29, 1997 at about 6:30 pm local time, a Cessna 140, registered N77166, was destroyed in an accident near Big Lake, Minnesota. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's maneuvers which exceeded the design stress limits of the airplane and resulted in structural overload of the horizontal tail followed by a structural overload of the wings.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 29, 1997 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Big Lake, Minnesota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 140 · all 140s on the register
- Registration
- N77166 · no longer on the register · serial 11628
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Witnesses reported that the airplane was maneuvering when there was a loud bang. They reported that the airplane's right wing had failed, and the fuselage was distorted before the aircraft crashed. Aircraft examination revealed that the airplane's horizontal tail had failed due to a positive G maneuver, and the wings and wing struts had failed due to a negative G maneuver. Eight days previous to the accident the pilot had flown a Waco airplane in Hawaii doing aerobatics.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 833 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,280 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 1, 1996; 62 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,450 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C-85-12 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 20Y Monticello MN
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 43°F (6°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:17 pm from PNM, 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.