Pilatus PC-12/45 accident near Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, March 26, 2005
On March 26, 2005 at about 6:48 pm local time, a Pilatus PC-12/45, registered N770G, was destroyed in an accident near Bellefonte, Pennsylvania (University Park Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 6 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain sufficient airspeed to avoid a stall during an instrument final approach to land, which resulted in an inadvertent stall/spin. Factors associated with the accident are the inadvertent stall/spin, the pilot's failure to follow procedures/directives, and clouds.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 26, 2005 · about 6:48 pm local time
- Place
- Bellefonte, Pennsylvania · University Park Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 6 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Pilatus PC-12/45 · all PC-12/45s on the register
- Registration
- N770G · registry record · serial 299
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The accident airplane was on an instrument landing system (ILS) approach to land, when witnesses reported seeing it spinning in a nose down, near vertical attitude before it collided with the ground. The accident site was about 3 miles from the approach end of the intended runway. A review of radar data disclosed that the private pilot had difficulty maintaining altitude and airspeed while on final approach, with significant excursions above and below the glidepath, as well as large variations in airspeed. Interviews with other pilots in the area just prior to and after the accident revealed that icing conditions existed in clouds near the airport, although first responders to the accident site indicated that there was no ice on the airplane. Postaccident inspection of the airplane, its engine and flight navigation systems, discovered no evidence of preimpact anomalies. An analysis of the airplane's navigation system's light bulbs, suggests that the pilot had selected the GPS mode for the initial approach, but had not switched to the proper instrument approach mode to allow the autopilot to lock onto the ILS.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,645 hours in all; 173 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,523 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, December 1, 2004
- Maximum gross weight: 9,921 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT-6A-67B (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: APF Naples FL at 2:53 pm
- Destination: UNV State College PA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 24, 6,701 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 130° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,700 ft
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 32°F (0°C)
- Altimeter: 30.10 inHg
- Observation at 7:00 pm from UNV, 3 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 5 |
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.