Cessna 414 accident near Monarch, Montana, May 31, 2000
On May 31, 2000 at about 11:28 pm local time, a Cessna 414, registered N5113G, was destroyed in an accident near Monarch, Montana. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were killed. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The failure of the pilot-in-command to ensure adequate airspeed for flight during a forced descent due to airframe icing, resulting in a stall. Factors included: freezing rain conditions, airframe icing, an improper decision by the pilot-in-command to turn toward mountainous terrain (where a turn toward lower and level terrain was a viable option), mountainous terrain, and insufficient altitude available for stall recovery.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 31, 2000 · about 11:28 pm local time
- Place
- Monarch, Montana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Cessna 414 · all 414s on the register
- Registration
- N5113G · registry record · serial 4140952
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During climbout, the airplane encountered an area of freezing rain resulting in rapid airframe ice accretion and loss of climb capability. The pilot informed ATC that he was unable to maintain altitude and requested and received clearance back to Great Falls, the departure airport. ATC radar showed that the airplane then began a right turn over mountainous terrain extending up to 8,309 feet prior to loss of radar contact (lower and relatively flat terrain, down to less than 5,000 feet, was located to the left of the aircraft's track.) During the last minute of radar contact, the aircraft was in a right turn at a descent rate of about 400 feet per minute; the aircraft passed less than 1/2 mile from the 8,309-foot mountain summit just prior to loss of radar contact, at an altitude of 8,400 to 8,500 feet. The aircraft crashed on the southwest flank of the 8,309-foot mountain about 1/2 mile south of the last recorded radar position. Wreckage and impact signatures at the crash site were indicative of an inverted, steep-angle, relatively low-speed, downhill impact with the terrain. The investigation revealed no evidence of any aircraft mechanical problems.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 8,000 hours in all; 105 in the last 90 days; 38 in the last 30 days; 7,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,406 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 2, 2000; 53 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,350 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-N (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: GTF Great Falls MT at 11:11 pm
- Destination: BIL Billings MT
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 304° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 400 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 34°F (1°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:56 pm from GTF, 37 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 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.