Amateur-built AA-5B accident near West Glacier, Montana, February 12, 1992
On February 12, 1992 at about 6:40 pm local time, a amateur-built AA-5B, registered CGRRZ, was destroyed in an accident near West Glacier, Montana. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE INFLIGHT ENCOUNTER WITH IMC WEATHER BY THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PILOT. FACTORS RELATING TO THE ACCIDENT WERE THE WEATHER CONDITIONS, THE MOUNTAINOUS/HILLY TERRAIN, AND LACK OF INSTRUMENT QUALIFICATION BY THE PILOT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 12, 1992 · about 6:40 pm local time
- Place
- West Glacier, Montana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built AA-5B
- Registration
- CGRRZ · no longer on the register · serial AA5B-0279
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PILOT ENCOUNTERED IMC WEATHER CONDITIONS IN A MOUNTAIN PASS AND THE ACFT IMPACTED TERRAIN DURING A TURN TO REVERSE COURSE.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 791 hours in all; 307 in this make and model; 22 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 746 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 710 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, April 29, 1991; 82 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A4K (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: EG3 Lacombe at 4:35 pm
- Destination: FCA Kalispell MT
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 10,000 ft; scat at 6,500 ft
- Temperature: 34°F (1°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:50 pm from FCA, 31 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.