Cessna TU206-G accident near Flagstaff, Arizona, September 24, 1983
On September 24, 1983 at about 2:30 am local time, a Cessna TU206-G, registered N7353N, was destroyed in an accident near Flagstaff, Arizona. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 24, 1983 · about 2:30 am local time
- Place
- Flagstaff, Arizona · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna TU206-G · all TU206-Gs on the register
- Registration
- N7353N · no longer on the register · serial U20603627
- 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
THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH TREES SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF. THE WEATHER WAS MARGINAL WITH 700 FT SCATTERED, CEILING 3000 FT WITH8 MILES VISIBILITY. THE PLT RECEIVED TWO WEATHER BRIEFINGS ABOUT AN HOUR APART WHILE WAITING FOR WEATHER IMPROVEMENT. THE BRIEFER COMMENTED THAT THE PLT WAS UNCERTAIN AND SEEMED RELUCTANT TO FLY IN MARGINAL WEATHER BECAUSE OF KNOWN IRREGULARITIES IN THE ACFTS INSTRUMENTS. POST ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE TURN COORDINATOR WAS DISCONNECTEDAND THE HEADING INDICATOR WAS INOPERATIVE. THE ATTITUDE INDICATOR WAS DESTROYED SO ITS OPERATION WAS NOT DETERMINED.
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: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,958 hours in all; 34 in this make and model; 167 in the last 90 days; 1,958 as pilot in command; 1,219 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,095 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 12, 1983; 84 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520M (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FLG Flagstaff AZ at 7:30 pm
- Destination: P16 Mesa AZ
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 230° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 3,000 ft; scat
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:23 am from FLG, 1 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.
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.