Cessna T207 accident near Hungry Horse, Montana, February 22, 1990
On February 22, 1990 at about 2:28 am local time, a Cessna T207, registered N91146, was destroyed in an accident near Hungry Horse, Montana. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FAILURE OF THE #4 CONNECTING ROD. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LACK OF SUITABLE TERRAIN FOR A FORCED LANDING.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 22, 1990 · about 2:28 am local time
- Place
- Hungry Horse, Montana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna T207 · all T207s on the register
- Registration
- N91146 · no longer on the register · serial 20700090
- 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
AIRSPUR FLT 500, A DOMESTIC CARGO FLT, DEPARTED KALISPELL, MT, AT 1903 MDT WITH AN IFR FLT PLAN TO GREAT FALLS, MT. AT 1922, THE PLT NOTIFIED SALT LAKE ARTCC HE WAS RETURNING TO KALISPELL DUE TO A ROUGH RUNNING ENG. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, THE PLT REPORTED THE ENG HAD FAILED COMPLETELY. THE PLT MADE AN EMERG FORCED LANDING ON A MOUNTAIN RIDGE AT THE APRX 5500 FT LEVEL IN IFR CONDITIONS. ACCIDENT LOCATION WAS APRX 18 NM EAST OF KALISPELL. ENG DISASSEMBLY LATER REVEALED THE #4 CONNECTING ROD HAD FAILED CATASTROPHICALLY.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,850 hours in all; 27 in this make and model; 63 in the last 90 days; 49 in the last 30 days; 1,710 as pilot in command; 240 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,455 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, February 1, 1990; 45 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-G (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FCA Kalispell MT at 2:03 am
- Destination: GTF Great Falls MT
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 170° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 4,800 ft; scat at 4,400 ft
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 am from FCA, 27 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.