Aero Commander 680FL accident near Duxsbury, Vermont, August 8, 1986
On August 8, 1986 at about 12:00 pm local time, a Aero Commander 680FL, registered N6341U, was destroyed in an accident near Duxsbury, Vermont (Burlington International airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 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
- August 8, 1986 · about 12:00 pm local time
- Place
- Duxsbury, Vermont · Burlington International
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aero Commander 680FL · all 680FLs on the register
- Registration
- N6341U · registry record · serial 137947
- 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
THE PLT WAS ON A VFR FLIGHT FROM MONTPELIER, VT TO BURLINGTON, VT; A DISTANCE OF ABOUT 80 MIS. A MOUNTAIN RANGE IS BETWEEN THE TWO LOCATION. SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF THE PLT RADIOED BURLINGTON APPROACH CONTROL AND REQUESTED AN IFR CLEARANCE TO LAND AT BURLINGTON. HE REPORTED THAT HE WAS 10 MILES NW OF MONTPELIER. THE PLT WAS ASSIGNED A TRANSPONDER CODE. THE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER THEN NOTICED THAT THE ACFT WAS NEAR A MOUNTAIN AT A UNVERIFIED ALTITUDE OF 3500 FT. THE CONTROLLER ALERTED THE PLT THAT HE WAS 2 MILES SOUTH OF A 4393 FT HIGH MOUNTAIN. THERE WAS NO RESPONSE FROM THE PLT. THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH THE EAST SIDE OF ETHAN ALLEN AT A HEIGHT OF 3580 FT. THE ACFT WAS ON A NORTHWEST HEADING AT IMPACT. VFR CONDITIONS OF 3800 FT BROKEN AND 4000 FT SCATTERED EXISTED AT THE TIME.
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: 2,428 hours in all; 53 in this make and model; 2,346 as pilot in command; 2,131 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,072 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 4, 1986; 72 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IGSO-540-B1A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Air Parcel Express
The flight
- Departed from: MPV Montpelier VT at 11:58 am
- Destination: BTV Burlington VT
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 12:19 pm from BTV
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.