Smith, Ted Aerostar AEROSTAR 601P accident near St. Clair Shore, Michigan, April 1, 1999
On April 1, 1999 at about 5:30 pm local time, a Smith, Ted Aerostar AEROSTAR 601P, registered N441CB, was destroyed in an accident near St. Clair Shore, Michigan. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Undetermined as the aircraft was not recovered.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 1, 1999 · about 5:30 pm local time
- Place
- St. Clair Shore, Michigan · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Smith, Ted Aerostar AEROSTAR 601P AEROSTAR 6
- Registration
- N441CB · registry record · serial 61P-0417150
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane took off from Port Huron, Michigan, on April 1, 1999, at 1130 est. The airplane was scheduled to arrive in Freemont, Ohio. An employee of the pilot's company said that the pilot was going to meet a customer there. At 1230 est, the customer called the company inquiring about the pilot. The employee said that the pilot 'would have taken the shortest route, over [Lake] St. Clair, Ontario [Province], and [Lake] Erie,' to get to Freemont, Ohio. An ALNOT was issued at 1803 est. Search and rescue operations were conducted by the U. S. Coast Guard, Civil Air Patrol, and the Canadian Search and Rescue Center. The search was suspended on April 10, 1999, at 2125 est. The passenger's body was discovered on May 1, 1999, in the Lake St. Clair shipping channel, approximately 6.9 miles east of St. Clair Shores, Michigan. On July 2, 1999, the pilot's body was found in Lake St. Clair. Parts of the airplane identified from the make and model of aircraft were recovered with the bodies.
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: foreign licence, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land
- Flight time: 1,550 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (expired)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,022 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 15, 1999
- Maximum gross weight: 6,000 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-AA1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Not recorded
The flight
- Departed from: PHN Port Huron MI at 4:30 pm
- Destination: 14G Freemont OH
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 3,900 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 59°F (15°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:54 pm from DTW, 26 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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 N441CB 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.