Cessna 208B accident near Bellevue, Idaho, December 6, 2004
On December 6, 2004 at about 5:20 pm local time, a Cessna 208B, registered N25SA, was destroyed in an accident near Bellevue, Idaho (Friedman Memorial airport). It was flown under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control while on approach for landing in icing conditions. Inadequate airspeed was a factor.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 6, 2004 · about 5:20 pm local time
- Place
- Bellevue, Idaho · Friedman Memorial · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 208B · all 208Bs on the register
- Registration
- N25SA · registry record · serial 208B0866
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Weather reporting facilities reported icing conditions in the area of the accident site. The pilot of a Cessna Citation flying the same RNAV approach twenty minutes prior to the accident aircraft reported picking up light to occasional moderate rime ice. The last communication between the local air traffic controller and the accident pilot indicated that the flight was two miles south of the final approach fix. The controller inquired if the pilot had the runway in sight, and the pilot reported "negative, still IMC." A witness on the ground near the accident site reported that he heard the aircraft first then saw it at a low level below the cloud base flying in a southeasterly direction. The witness stated that the right wing was lower than the left as the aircraft continued to descend. The witness then noted that the wings were moving "side to side" (up and down) a couple of times before the nose of the aircraft dropped near vertical to the terrain. This witness reported hearing the sound of the engine running steady throughout the event. The wreckage was located in a flat open field about 3,000 feet south of the final approach fix coordinates. The aircraft was destroyed by impact damage and a post crash fire.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 9,757 hours in all; 202 in this make and model; 196 in the last 90 days; 93 in the last 30 days; 9,277 as pilot in command; 1,472 on instruments
- Last flight review: October 22, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,117 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, November 9, 2004; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-114A (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Mountain Bird Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: SLC Salt Lake City UT at 4:04 pm
- Destination: SUN Hailey ID
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,500 ft; scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 43°F (6°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.72 inHg
- Observation at 5:45 pm from SUN, 8 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| 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.
Other NTSB records under N25SA 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.