Cessna T207 accident near Grand Canyon, Arizona, April 13, 1990
On April 13, 1990 at about 9:58 pm local time, a Cessna T207, registered N91081, was destroyed in an accident near Grand Canyon, Arizona (Grand Canyon airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 7 people were seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
IMPROPER ADJUSTMENT OF THE TURBO-CHARGER ABSOLUTE PRESSURE CONTROLLER, AND IMPROPER MANIPULATION OF THE POWER PLANT CONTROLS BY THE PILOT DURING THE GO-AROUND. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: FAILURE OF COMPANY MANAGEMENT TO PROPERLY TRAIN THE PILOT IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE APPROVED COMPANY TRAINING PROGRAM, AND THE PILOT'S LACK OF EXPERIENCE IN TURBO-CHARGED ENGINE OPERATIONS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 13, 1990 · about 9:58 pm local time
- Place
- Grand Canyon, Arizona · Grand Canyon · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 7 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna T207 · all T207s on the register
- Registration
- N91081 · registry record · serial 20700062
- 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
ACCORDING TO WITNESSES, THE ACFT WAS ABOUT TO TOUCHDOWN FROM A NORMAL APCH TO RWY 21, WHEN IT ENCOUNTERED VARIALBLE WIND CONDS & BALLOONED TO ABOUT 70' AGL. THE PLT INITIATED A GO-AROUND. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, WITNESSES OBSERVED A PUFF OF SMOKE EMANATE FROM THE ACFT, THEN THE PLT TRANSMITTED THAT THE FLT WAS 'GOING DOWN.' SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH TREES ON WOODED TERRAIN ABOUT 1/2 MI FROM THE DEP END OF THE RWY. AN EXAM REVEALED A LACK OF POWER SIGNATURES ON THE PROP; EVIDENCE OF SOOTING WAS FOUND ON THE SPARK PLUGS (INDICATING A RICH MIXTURE). TESTING OF THE TURBO-CONTROLLER REVEALED EVIDENCE THAT IT HAD BEEN ADJUSTED TO A LOW SETTING; THE TURBO WOULD ONLY PRODUCE A MAXIMUM AIR FLOW EQUAL TO HIGH CRUISE POWER. THE ENG MANUFACTURER RPRTD THAT THIS SITUATION COULD PRODUCE AN OVER-RICH MIXTURE, PARTICULARILY IF THE THROTTLE AND/OR MIXTURE CONTROLS WERE IMPROPPERLY MANIPULATED. THE PILOT LACKED EXPERIENCE IN ACFT WITH TURBO-CHARGED ENGS & HE WAS NOT TRAINED IAW THE COMPANY TRAINING PROGRAM.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 555 hours in all; 9 in this make and model; 89 in the last 90 days; 43 in the last 30 days; 407 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,325 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, March 31, 1990; 35 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-HCG (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Windrock Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: GCN at 9:00 pm
- Destination: GCN
- Runway 21, 8,999 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:00 pm from GCN
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 6 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number LAX90FA145.