Skip to content

CHI93LA041

1992-11-23 · MCCOOK, Nebraska, United States · Serious · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport MCK

Current FAA registration · N777CM

Make / Model
AERO COMMANDER 500-B
Year of manufacture
1964 · 28 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING TI0-540 SER (310 hp)
Seats / Engines
7 seats · 2 engines
Last airworthiness date
19640310
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S AA8346

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

THE PILOT'S IMPROPER DECISION TO DEPART IN KNOWN ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS. THE ICING CONDITIONS AND STRUCTURAL ICE WERE FACTORS.

Factual narrative

THE ACCIDENT AIRPLANE CRASHED ON AIRPORT PROPERTY AFTER REPORTING THE AIRPORT IN SIGHT DURING A NIGHT IFR APPROACH. THE PILOT REPORTED THE WEATHER AT THE TIME OF DEPARTURE WAS 500 FEET OVERCAST WITH VISIBILITY RESTRICTED TO 1.5 MILES IN FREEZING DRIZZLE. THE PILOT REPORTED HE WAS UNABLE TO REACH HIS ASSIGNED ALTITUDE OF 9000 FEET BECAUSE OF STRUCTURAL ICING. HE ALSO REPORTED AN UNCOMMANDED DECREASE IN RPM IN THE LEFT ENGINE DURING THE EN ROUTE CLIMB. HE REPORTED TO ATC HE COULD NOT MAINTAIN ALTITUDE AND REQUESTED AN 'IMMEDIATE' RETURN TO HIS DEPARTURE AIRPORT. THE PILOT REPORTED THE AIRPLANE STALLED AS HE WAS TURNING FROM LEFT BASE TO FINAL FOR THE LANDING RUNWAY. HE RECOVERED FROM THE STALL AND DECIDED TO 'PLACE' THE AIRCRAFT IN A FIELD. THE PILOT REPORTED ANOTHER STALL, 'A FEW FEET ABOVE THE GROUND AND CRASHED.' A POST ACCIDENT INSPECTION REVEALED ICE BUILDUPS ON THE LEADING EDGE OF ALL AIRFOIL SURFACES AND THE UNDERSIDE OF THE WINGS. NO MECHANICAL DEFECTS WERE DISCOVERED IN THE LEFT ENGINE OR PROPELLER SYSTEM. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1992_CHI93LA041.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Search this event elsewhere

External sources are reported, not agency: signal that something happened, not fact about what happened.

Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (icing, stall). All research papers