Cessna 414 accident near Franklin Twp, Pennsylvania, December 22, 1988
On December 22, 1988 at about 1:38 pm local time, a Cessna 414, registered N244RM, was destroyed in an accident near Franklin Twp, Pennsylvania (Erie airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were 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
- December 22, 1988 · about 1:38 pm local time
- Place
- Franklin Twp, Pennsylvania · Erie · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 414 · all 414s on the register
- Registration
- N244RM · no longer on the register · serial 0823
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
BEFORE TAKEOFF, THE CREW INDCD THE FLT WOULD BE FOR 'CHECK RIDES' & THAT THEY PLANNED TO 'SHOOT APPROACHES' & PROCEED TO THE PRACTICE AREA TO DO SOME AIRWORK. ATC ADVISED THE PLTS THAT THE CLOUD BASES WERE AT 3500 FEET MSL. ELEVATION OF THE TERRAIN (WHERE THE ACFT SUBSEQUENTLY CRASHED) WAS 1225 FEET. PRIOR TO THE ACDNT, WITNESSES SAW THE ACFT CIRCLING IN A STEEP TURN AT LOW ALTITUDE. ONE WITNESS RPRTD IT WAS CIRCLING AS IF TO LAND. SUBSEQUENTLY, IT IMPACTED IN A STEEP NOSE DOWN, SLIGHT LEFT WING LOW, ATTITUDE. SEVERAL WITNESSES RPRTD THAT ONE OR BOTH ENGS SPUTTERED BEFORE THE ACFT CRASHED; HOWEVER, AN EXAM OF THE ENGS REVEALED NO INDCN OF A PREIMPACT MALFUNCTION OR FAILURE. AN EXAM OF THE AIRFRAME REVEALED THE LANDING GEAR WAS IN THE EXTENDED POSITION WHEN THE ACFT CRASHED. EXAM OF THE PROPS INDICATED THAT BOTH ENGS WERE PRODUCING AN EQUAL AMOUNT OF POWER. THE AIRWORK TO BE COMPLETED INCLUDED STEEP TURNS, STALLS, AND FLIGHT AT MINIMUM CONTROL AIRSPEED.
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,712 hours in all; 154 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 1,498 as pilot in command; 750 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,521 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 3, 1988; 50 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,350 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520(NB) (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: ERI Erie PA at 1:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 080° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,300 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:50 pm from ERI, 10 miles away
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.