Cessna 421B accident near Mason City, Iowa, November 27, 1984
On November 27, 1984 at about 8:05 pm local time, a Cessna 421B, registered N41097, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mason City, Iowa (Minicipal airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- November 27, 1984 · about 8:05 pm local time
- Place
- Mason City, Iowa · Minicipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 421B · all 421Bs on the register
- Registration
- N41097 · registry record · serial 421B0447
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ATP PIC KNEW THAT HE WOULD BE FLYING INTO AREA OF SURFACE ICING. BOOTS ON HORIZONTAL STABILIZER DID NOT REMOVE ICE. OVER RWY AT 30 FT, ACFT STALLED & HIT THE RWY HARD. MANUFACTORER STATES ACFT CANNOT BE CERTIFIED FOR FLT INTO KNOWN ICING. DEICE AND ANTI-ICE EQUIPMENT WAS INSTALLED AT THE FACTORY DURING MANUFACTURE.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,104 hours in all; 124 in this make and model; 62 in the last 90 days; 1,942 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,973 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 11, 1984; 14 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,800 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental GTSIO-520-H (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Skytrak Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: MCW Chicago IL at 6:15 pm
- Destination: MCW Mason City IA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 35, 6,504 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 13 knots
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:14 pm from MCW
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N41097 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.