Cessna 401A accident near Dorset, Vermont, March 18, 1985
On March 18, 1985 at about 1:15 am local time, a Cessna 401A, registered N12CQ, was destroyed in an accident near Dorset, Vermont (Rutland State airport). It was an executive or corporate flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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
- March 18, 1985 · about 1:15 am local time
- Place
- Dorset, Vermont · Rutland State
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 401A · all 401As on the register
- Registration
- N12CQ · no longer on the register · serial 401A116
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Executive or corporate flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT WAS ABOUT 30 MILES FROM RUTLAND WHEN HE RADIOED THE ARPT FOR WEATHER INFO. HE WAS INFORMED THAT CLOUDS WERE 1500 FT BROKEN AND 2700 FT OVERCAST WITH SNOW, LIGHT FOG AND 5 MILES VISIBILITY. THE PLT RESPONDED THAT HE WOULD CALL AGAIN WHEN HE GOT CLOSER TO THE ARPT. THERE WAS NO FURTHER TRANSMISSION RECEIVED FROM THE PLT. THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH DORSET MT, LOCATED ABOUT 18 MILES SOUTH OF THE ARPT. THE ACFT WAS IN A LEVEL ATTITUDE AND AT A ELEVATION OF 3300 FT. DORSET MT IS 3515 FT HIGH. EXAMINATION OF THE ACFT DID NOT DISCLOSE EVIDENCE OF MALFUNCTION. NO FLT PLAN WAS FILED.
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; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,946 hours in all; 3,149 in this make and model; 4,771 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,062 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 9, 1984
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CDW Caldwell NJ at 11:39 pm
- Destination: RUT Rutland VT
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 340° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 1,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 21°F (-6°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
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.
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.