North American SNJ-5 accident near Torrington, Wyoming, September 19, 2005
On September 19, 2005 at about 11:45 pm local time, a North American SNJ-5, registered N212TC, was substantially damaged in an accident near Torrington, Wyoming (Torrington Municipal Airport). 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
failure of the #7 connecting rod, causing engine seizure. A contributing factor was the berm.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 19, 2005 · about 11:45 pm local time · cases in 2005
- Place
- Torrington, Wyoming · Torrington Municipal Airport · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- North American SNJ-5 · all SNJ-5s on the register
- Registration
- N212TC · registry record · serial 12141732
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was eastbound and descending from a cruising altitude of 13,500 feet for landing. The pilot said that during descent, the "cylinder number 1 failed, followed immediately by the failure of cylinder number 2, and within about 4 seconds a total seizure of the engine." The pilot made a forced landing in an alfalfa field, subsequently impacting a berm and substantially damaging the airplane. The engine was later disassembled and examined. The engine had seized and could not be turned because connecting rods 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, and 9 were found broken, and numbers 5 and 6 were found severely damaged. Connecting rod 8 was not broken or damaged. Metal contamination was noted in the push rod housings, oil sump, thrust cover and bearing; cam, cam rollers, cam drive gear and inspection hole; main case, and oil screen. According to the FAA inspector, there were indications that the #7 connecting rod had struck the crankcase between #6 and #7 cylinders, breaking the through bolts.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,215 hours in all; 575 in this make and model; 8,215 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,550.9 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 1, 2005; 35 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney R-1340 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OGD Ogden UT at 9:00 pm
- Destination: BFF Scottsbluff NE
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 12°F (-11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.12 inHg
- Observation at 11:53 pm from TOR
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 N212TC the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N212TC on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- North American SNJ-5 Texan (Navy) 136 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- North American 1,297 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney R-1340 1,229 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Torrington Municipal · nearest airport
- Ogden-Hinckley Airport · departed from
- Scottsbluff/Western Nebraska Rgnl/Wm B Heilig Field · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in Wyoming 778 since 1982 · 108 in the last ten years
- Wyoming 3,232 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N212TC 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/DEN05LA143.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.