On February 23, 2018, a CESSNA 441 NO SERIES (registration N771XW) operated by PONDEROSA AVIATION LLC was involved in an aviation accident near Rossville, IN. 3 people were killed. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: An in-flight loss of control for reasons that could not be determined based on the available evidence. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.
On February 22, 2018, a Cessna 441 Conquest II, N771XW, crashed in Rossville, Indiana, after a loss of control. The pilot and two passengers were killed. The flight was operating under IFR when the pilot reported control difficulties.
Accident Overview and Flight History On February 22, 2018, at 1939 eastern standard time, a Cessna 441 Conquest II, registration N771XW, impacted terrain in Rossville, Indiana, following a loss of control. The airline transport rated pilot and two passengers were fatally injured, and the aircraft was destroyed. The airplane was registered to and operated by Ponderosa Aviation LLC under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a business flight. Night instrument meteorological conditions prevailed, and the flight was operating on an instrument flight plan. The flight originated from the Eagle Creek Airpark (EYE) in Indianapolis, Indiana, at approximately 1920, with an intended destination of the Green Bay Austin Straubel International Airport (GRB) in Green Bay, Wisconsin. After takeoff, the pilot contacted Indianapolis departure control and was cleared direct to the Boiler (BVT) VHF Omni-directional Range & Tactical Air Navigation (VORTAC) system. About a minute after checking in, the airplane deviated from its assigned altitude and course, triggering a Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System (STARS) Minimum Safe Altitude Warning (MSAW). The controller queried the pilot, who stated the airplane was “a little out of control.” The pilot later reported a trim problem and difficulty controlling the aircraft but claimed to have it back to straight and level. The pilot was issued a turn to a heading of 310° direct to BVT and cleared to climb and maintain 13,000 ft. The pilot then checked in with the Chicago Air Route Traffic Control Center (ZAU) sector 57, stating he was climbing from 10,600 ft to 13,000 ft. He was cleared to climb to FL200 (20,000 ft) and then to FL230 (23,000 ft) direct to GRB. The pilot was instructed to change frequencies to ZAU46 sector. He then transmitted that he needed to get control of the airplane and that his trim was “kind of going out on me.” Communications and radar contact were then lost. The last radar data was in the vicinity of the accident site, and the last altitude data recorded was 18,300 ft. Several witnesses reported hearing the airplane flying overhead, describing it as very loud with a continuous engine sound until impact. ## Personnel Information The pilot held an airline transport pilot certificate with multi-engine and Eclipse 500 ratings, and commercial privileges for single-engine land airplanes. He also held a flight instructor certificate with airplane single-engine, airplane multi-engine, and instrument airplane ratings, issued May 23, 2017. His logbook contained entries between September 13, 2004, and January 20, 2018, with a total flight time of 2,248.3 hours, including 454.6 hours in Cessna 441 airplanes. He held an FAA second-class medical certificate issued March 30, 2017, with the limitation “Must wear corrective lenses.” His last flight review was on February 2, 2017, in a Cessna 441 airplane. The pilot was hired by Ponderosa Aviation LLC to fly the airplane for the company. The first flight logged in the accident airplane was on December 20, 2017, with 24.2 hours logged before the accident. The pilot had received unusual attitude and upset training in February 2016. ## Aircraft Information The Cessna 441 Conquest II is an eight to ten-place, twin-engine airplane with a pressurized cabin and retractable tricycle landing gear. It is certificated as a normal category airplane with a maximum operating altitude of 35,000 ft. The main cabin entry door is located on the left side of the airplane, aft of the wing and common to the aft portion of the cabin. The airplane is equipped with an icing protection system including pneumatic deice devices (boots) for the wings and stabilizers, and electrical deice elements for the propeller, windshield, pitot tubes, and stall warning sensor. Flight into known icing conditions is approved, except for severe icing conditions. The airplane is powered by two Honeywell TPE331-10N turboprop engines that can produce 715 shaft horsepower at 2,000 rpm. The engine design featured an integral gearbox, two-stage centrifugal compressor, reverse flow annular combustor, and a three-stage axial flow. The propellers were Hartzell propeller assemblies with four-blade, hydraulically actuated, constant speed design configuration, with feathering and reverse pitch capability. Ponderosa Aviation LLC purchased the airplane on October 13, 2017. Phase 2, 3, & D inspections were accomplished on the airframe and engines on November 1, 2017, at a total aircraft time of 6,907.5 hours. At the time of this inspection, the time since overhaul of both engines was 2,095.6 hours. The last entry in the airframe logbook was dated February 19, 2018, which documented the removal and replacement of the left horizontal situation indicator (HSI) at an aircraft total time of 6,972.7 hours. Maintenance records show that both elevator trim tab actuators were disassembled, cleaned, inspected, primed, and reinstalled on October 23, 2017. The person who coordinated the maintenance of the airplane stated the only open discrepancy he was aware of was an issue with a fluctuating oil pressure indication. He stated that the oil pressure had been checked and was ok, but they were still trying to determine why there was a fluctuating indication. The airplane was fueled with 230 gallons of Jet A fuel before the flight. ## Meteorological Information Two Airmen’s Meteorological Information notices (AIRMET) that covered the route of flight were in effect at the time of the accident. AIRMET SIERA called for instrument meteorological conditions with ceilings below 1,000 ft and 3 statute miles of visibility with precipitation, mist, and fog. AIRMET TANGO called for moderate turbulence between 18,000 ft and 35,000 ft. ## Wreckage and Impact Information The accident site was located about 0.34 miles north of the town of Rossville, Indiana. The airplane impacted terrain in a plowed field (upper field) which was soft and muddy. A shallow linear disruption of the dirt was present which was about 250 ft in length. The impact mark was present up to the crest of a slight incline where the main pieces of wreckage began. Trees bordered the east end of the field and just beyond the tree line was a tree-covered hill which descended about 50 ft at a slope of about 50°. The trees on the hillside were about 80 to 100 ft tall. At the bottom of the hill was an 8-10 ft wide creek. The east bank of the creek was treelined and beyond the trees were two open fields (lower fields) which were divided by a row of small trees and brush. The wreckage was scattered in the upper field, down the hillside, and into the lower fields. The entire wreckage path was about ¼ mile in length. The wreckage path in the upper field was scattered after the initial terrain impact point and along a magnetic heading of about 110°. The first pieces of wreckage along the path were the nose baggage doors. The upper left engine cowling and the rudder were the next major pieces of wreckage along the path followed by the outboard section of the left wing, the elevators, and the outboard section of the right wing. Both outboard flaps and the right-wing inboard flap were found in the upper field along with pieces of the left inboard flap. The vertical stabilizer, the cockpit wiring bundle, and the cockpit flight controls including the throttle quadrant were the major pieces of wreckage found on the hillside. The wreckage located in the lower field consisted of the fragmented pressure vessel, the aft pressure bulkhead, the left and right engines, both propellers, avionics, pieces of the instrument panel, all three-landing gear, and a section of the left wing between the aileron and the engine. The left engine was the main piece of wreckage that was located furthest from the initial impact in the upper field. A postaccident examination was conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge, and FAA inspectors, with the assistance of a representative of the engine and airplane manufacturers. The examination did not reveal any anomalies consistent with a preimpact failure or malfunction. A detailed summary of the examination is included in the docket associated with the investigation. ## Medical and Pathological Information An autopsy on the pilot was conducted on February 25, 2018, by the Indiana Forensic & Surgical Pathology at the request of the Carroll County, Indiana Coroner’s Office. The pilot’s cause of death was attributed to injuries sustained in the aircraft accident. Toxicology testing performed by the FAA Bioaeronautical Research Sciences Laboratory, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, was negative for carbon monoxide, cyanide, and ethanol. The testing was negative for drugs in the testing profile. ## Tests and Research The Honeywell enhanced ground proximity warning system (EGPWS) was examined and downloaded at the Honeywell facility in Redmond, Washington, on March 20, 2018. The EGPWS does not record continuous flight history; it is an event driven recording. The version of the terrain database on the unit was not the most current version. No terrain warnings were recorded at the end of the flight and some of the recorded data was invalid. The radar data ground track showed the airplane made a turn to the west followed by a turn to the north shortly after takeoff. The airplane then made a 270° left turn before heading east. The airplane then turned to the northwest as it continued to climb. The airplane then entered a sweeping right turn before entering a 450° turn and rolling out on a northerly heading. The ground track then turned northeasterly before ending.