Cessna 337 accident near Ennis, MT
On July 30, 2020, a Cessna 337 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Ennis, MT. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- July 30, 2020
- Place
- Ennis, MT
- Aircraft
- Cessna 337 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 2 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 45.390°N, 111.558°W
- NTSB ID
- 20200730X63728
Official records · WPR20LA245
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
On July 30, 2020, about 0938 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 337F, N337V, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Ennis, Montana. The right-front seat student pilot was fatally injured, and the left-front seat commercial pilot-in-command (PIC) and rear-seat passenger were seriously injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 personal cross-country flight. According to the PIC, he planned a route of flight from Helena, Montana, to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The PIC further reported that the right seat student pilot was flying the airplane about 3,000 ft above ground level. When they decided to fly over a ski resort at Big Bear, Montana, the flying right-seat student pilot turned the airplane to the southeast in the direction of mountainous terrain. The airplane subsequently entered a boxed canyon, and with a ridge now in the airplane’s flightpath that could not be cleared, the PIC took control of the airplane and attempted an evasive maneuver to exit the boxed canyon. However, the evasive maneuver, which was unsuccessful, resulted in a stall/spin and subsequent impact with remote mountainous terrain. The PIC opined that the accident should have been easily avoided by having more than sufficient altitude before entering mountainous terrain. Additionally, the PIC reported no mechanical anomalies with the airplane or engine prior to the accident that would have precluded normal operation. The rear seat passenger reported that they departed Helena at 0845 and that the “entirety of the flight was flown by the
Probable cause
The pilot-in-command’s failure to maintain sufficient airspeed while attempting an evasive maneuver from a boxed canyon, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall/spin and impact with mountainous terrain. Contributing to the accident was the pilot-in-command’s failure to monitor the environment before flying into mountainous terrain.
More accidents in MT
- Pilatus PC-12/45, Mar 22, 2009
- Beech D18S, Jul 5, 1987
- Cessna 550, Dec 18, 1992
- Beech V35B, Jun 24, 1982
- Cessna 182C, May 12, 2007
Browse: Montana · Cessna aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
