Cessna 401 accident near Monticello, New York, December 3, 1982
On December 3, 1982 at about 6:30 pm local time, a Cessna 401, registered N4073Q, was substantially damaged in an accident near Monticello, New York (Sullivan County Int'L. airport). It was a ferry flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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
- December 3, 1982 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Monticello, New York · Sullivan County Int'L. · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 401 · all 401s on the register
- Registration
- N4073Q · no longer on the register · serial 4010173
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Ferry flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT COLLIDED WITH TREES DURING AN INSTRUMENT APPROACH TO SULLIVAN COUNTY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. AN IFR FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED AND THE WEATHER WAS IMC. IT APPEARS THAT THE PILOT DID NOT RECEIVE A COMPLETE AND CURRENT WEATHER BRIEFINGS AND GOT HIS WEATHER SECOND-HAND FROM THE PILOT ORIGINALLY SCHEDULED FOR THE FLIGHT. THE ACCIDENT PILOT WENT BELOW HIS DECISION HEIGHT AND IN POST ACCIDENT DISCUSSIONS SEEMED UNSURE OF MISSED APPROACH PROCEDURES. THE VISIBILITY REPORTED WAS BELOW MINUMUMS FOR THE ACCIDENT.
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, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,225 hours in all; 250 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 4,500 as pilot in command; 1,200 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,595 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 25 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520E (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Monticello Aircraft Services,
The flight
- Departed from: Teterboro NJ at 12:55 pm
- Destination: Monticello NY
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 15, 6,300 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 4 knots
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 118°F (48°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:47 pm from MSV
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
Other NTSB records under N4073Q 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.