Cessna 414 accident near Johnstown, Pennsylvania, December 26, 2006
On December 26, 2006 at about 8:55 pm local time, a Cessna 414, registered N400CS, was destroyed in an accident near Johnstown, Pennsylvania (Murtha Johnstown airport). It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper decision to abort the landing with a damaged airplane. Contributing to the accident were the damage from the airplane's impact with the runway, the pilot's failure to lower the landing gear prior to the landing attempt, and the in-flight icing conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 26, 2006 · about 8:55 pm local time
- Place
- Johnstown, Pennsylvania · Murtha Johnstown · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 414 · all 414s on the register
- Registration
- N400CS · no longer on the register · serial 414-0613
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane encountered in-flight icing, and the pilot diverted to an airport to attempt to knock the ice off at a lower altitude. During the instrument approach, the pilot advised the tower controller of the ice, and that it depended on whether or not the ice came off the airplane if she would land. As the airplane broke out of the clouds, it appeared to tower personnel to be executing a missed approach; however, it suddenly "dove" for the runway. The tower supervisor noticed that the landing gear were not down, and at 75 to 100 feet above the runway, advised the pilot to go around. The airplane continued to descend, and by the time it impacted the runway, the landing gear were only partially extended, and the propellers and airframe impacted the pavement. The pilot then attempted to abort the landing. The damaged airplane became airborne, climbed to the right, stalled, and nosed straight down into the ground.
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, foreign licence
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,547 hours in all; 68 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: September 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,904 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, December 1, 2006; 11 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,350 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO 520 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Flight Source LLC
The flight
- Departed from: MGW Morgantown WV at 8:20 pm
- Destination: TEB Teterboro NJ
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 33, 7,003 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 16 knots, gusting 21
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 700 ft
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.55 inHg
- Observation at 8:54 pm from JST
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.