Cessna T207A accident near Grand Canyon, Arizona, October 10, 1989
On October 10, 1989 at about 7:42 pm local time, a Cessna T207A, registered N7602U, was destroyed in an accident near Grand Canyon, Arizona. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 3 people were seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE INFLIGHT FAILURE OF THE AIRPLANE'S POWERPLANT AS A RESULT METAL FATIGUE WHICH ALLOWED THE CRANKSHAFT TO FRACTURE. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN OF THE GRAND CANYON WHICH DID NOT ALLOW A SUITABLE FORCED LANDING AREA.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 10, 1989 · about 7:42 pm local time
- Place
- Grand Canyon, Arizona · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna T207A · all T207As on the register
- Registration
- N7602U · no longer on the register · serial 20700442
- 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 AIRPLANE WAS FLYING A SCENIC TOUR WHEN THERE WAS A LOSS OF ENGINE POWER. THE PILOT SWITCHED FUEL TANKS TO THE FULLEST TANK AND POWER WAS REGAINED MOMENTARILY. THE ENGINE STOPPED. THE PROPELLER DID NOT WINDMILL. THE PILOT ACCOMPLISHED AN OFF AIRPORT LANDING IN RUGGED MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN. DISASSEMBLY OF THE ENGINE REVEALED THE CRANKSHAFT HAD FRACTURED. EXAMINATION OF THE FRACTURE REVEALED SUBSURFACE METAL FATIGUE.
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: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,765 hours in all; 1,000 in this make and model; 304 in the last 90 days; 95 in the last 30 days; 2,554 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,302 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 6, 1989; 92 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PGA Page AZ at 7:00 pm
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:42 pm from GCN
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.