# Accident 19980302002419A: Cessna T303, Midvale, ID, March 2, 1998

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 2, 1998, 18:05 local time
- Place: Midvale, ID
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Unknown/Not Reported
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 44.3797° N, 116.5805° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.3797&lon=-116.5805&mi=10
- Aircraft: N727RT, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N727RT-1998-08-25) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna T303 (registry code 2073820, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-t303) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA T303
- Reported engine: CONT TSIO520AE
- People aboard: 6
- Fatal injuries: 6
- Pilot flight hours: 7,743 total, 319 in this make and model, 169 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB SEA98FA042](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA98FA042) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980302002419A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(.4)RADAR DATA INDICATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT COMPLETED A FIGURE-EIGHT MANEUVER AT ABOUT 3,000 FEET AGL, WITH AN ESTIMATED AIRSPEED OF 140 KNOTS AND APPROXIMATE 40 DEGREE BANK ANGLE BEFORE LEVELING OUT AT THE COMPLETION OF THE MANEUVER. THE RADAR DATA THEN INDICATED LEVEL FLIGHT BEFORE A RAPID DESCENT.  A WITNESS REPORTED OBSERVING THE AIRCRAFT IN VISUAL CONDITIONS AND FLYING AT A HIGH ALTITUDE AND THAT IT 'APPEARED FAST.'  THE WITNESS STATED THAT HE OBSERVED THE AIRCRAFT MAKE A WIDE, SHALLOW LEFT TURN, THEN TURN BACK THE OTHER WAY.  THE NOSE OF THE AIRCRAFT THEN STARTED TO GRADUALLY LOWER, AND THE AIRPLANE EVENTUALLY CAME STRAIGHT DOWN AND STARTED TO SPIN.  THE WITNESS LOST SIGHT OF THE AIRPLANE BEHIND HILLY TERRAIN AND HE DID NOT SEE THE IMPACT.  POST-ACCIDENT EXAMINATION OF THE WRECKAGE INDICATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT COLLIDED WITH THE TERRAIN IN A SLIGHT NOSE-DOWN ATTITUDE, LOCATED IN A GULLY WITH APPROXIMATE 30 DEGREE BANK ANGLE.  THE AIRCRAFT THEN SLID DOWNHILL TO THE RIGHT AND CAME TO REST WITH THE FUSELAGE UPRIGHT AND THE EMPENNAGE WAS TWISTED TO THE RIGHT AND INVERTED.  NO EVIDENCE WAS FOUND TO INDICATE A MECHANICAL FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB SEA98FA042](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA98FA042), Mar 3, 1998: Cessna T303 (N727RT), Midvale, ID, destroyed, 6 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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