Cessna 320E accident near Missoula, Montana, June 21, 2005
On June 21, 2005 at about 3:30 pm local time, a Cessna 320E, registered N3438Q, was destroyed in an accident near Missoula, Montana (Missoula International Airport). It was an other work-use flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Terrain clearance was not possible as a result of a right engine failure. Factors contributing to the accident included the rising terrain, foreign material being ingested into the engine's turbocharger, which obstructed the turbocharger's impeller, the failure of company maintenance personnel to ensure that the air filter instruction sheet was removed after maintenance had been completed on the airplane, and the pilot's inadequate preflight planning and decision in taking off in excess of the airplane's maximum certificated gross takeoff weight.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 21, 2005 · about 3:30 pm local time
- Place
- Missoula, Montana · Missoula International Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 320E · all 320Es on the register
- Registration
- N3438Q · no longer on the register · serial 320E0038
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Other work-use flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot noted there were no anomalies with the airplane prior to departure during the preflight and engine runups, and that the takeoff was normal until about 100 to 200 feet above the ground when the right engine lost power. After feathering the right propeller, securing the engine, and establishing a left bank into the operating engine, the airplane began to climb slowly. The pilot then turned about 25 degrees to the left towards a field to avoid some trees. However, due to the initial loss of altitude when the engine lost power the airplane was now below the top of a hill, which the pilot was unable to clear. The airplane subsequently impacted the hill in a slightly right wing low, nose high attitude. The aircraft was consumed by fire, but not before the pilot and his passenger egressed the airplane safely. During the postaccident recovery of the right engine's turbocharger, which had separated from the engine during the impact sequence, various pieces of paper were observed lodged between the turbocharger's impeller and its housing. An examination of the pieces of paper extracted from the turbocharger revealed they were from an air filter instructional sheet. It was also determined that the replacement air filter had been installed on the right engine approximately 4 months prior to the accident, with the airplane having accumulated about 54 hours during that time period. Inspection of a new packaged filter revealed that the instruction sheet (8 1/2 x 11 folded into a quarter sheet), along with a sticker are placed inside the filter canister and the canister is placed in a plastic bag. The sticker was at the bottom of the bag while the instructions were molded to the inside of the filter. The pilot disclosed that the gross weight of the airplane at takeoff was 5,382.6 pounds.
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; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,100 hours in all; 3,000 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 4,843 as pilot in command; 1,250 on instruments
- Last flight review: August 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,963.8 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 1, 2005; 54.4 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,300 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Continental TSIO-520E (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Continental TSIO-520E (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Map Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: MSO Missoula MT at 3:30 pm
- Destination: MSO Missoula MT
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29, 9,501 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.05 inHg
- Observation at 3:31 pm from MSO, 1 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.
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.