# Accident 19980528011239A: Cessna 414, North Platte, NE, May 28, 1998

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 28, 1998, 13:00 local time
- Place: North Platte, NE
- Airport: Lee Bird Field
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Fcd/Prec Ldg From Cruise
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Operator: YQSA
- Location: 41.1305° N, 100.7698° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=41.1305&lon=-100.7698&mi=10
- Aircraft: N888AA, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N888AA-2000-03-21) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 414 (registry code 2075908, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-414) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 414
- Reported engine: CONT TSIO520J
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 2,353 total, 312 in this make and model, 103 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI98LA178](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI98LA178) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980528011239A

## Narrative

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

CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE. UNABLE FEATHER PROP. UNABLE COOPE. DESCENDED INTO TREES. (.4)THE AIRPLANE HAD JUST TAKEN OFF AND WAS AT APPROXIMATELY 300 AGL WHEN THE RIGHT ENGINE 'HAD A SUDDEN AND CATASTROPHIC FAILURE.'  THE RIGHT PROPELLER STOPPED SPINNING WITH THE BLADES IN THE LOW-PITCH POSITION.  THE PILOT INITIATED A RIGHT TURN BACK TOWARD THE AIRPORT, BUT THE AIRPLANE WOULD NOT MAINTAIN ALTITUDE.  THE PILOT ROLLED OUT OF THE TURN, BUT THE DESCENT CONTINUED UNTIL THE AIRPLANE STRUCK THE TREES.  EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE'S RIGHT ENGINE REVEALED THAT THE CRANKSHAFT WAS BROKEN AT THE NUMBER 3 SHORT CHEEK, JUST FORWARD OF THE NUMBER TWO CYLINDER PISTON ROD.  THE NUMBER TWO CRANKSHAFT BEARING WAS BROKEN AND MELTED.  THE OIL FEED LINE TO THE NUMBER TWO BEARING WAS BLOCKED BY A PIECE OF THE BROKEN BEARING.  THE SINGLE ENGINE CLIMB DATA TABLE IN THE CESSNA 414 PILOT'S OPERATING HANDBOOK INDICATES THAT AN AIRPLANE WEIGHING 5,680 POUNDS, WITH GEAR AND FLAPS RETRACTED AND THE INOPERATIVE PROPELLER IN FEATHER, OPERATING AT A DENSITY ALTITUDE OF 5,055 FEET, WILL HAVE A BEST CLIMB INDICATED AIRSPEED OF 115 KNOTS.  THE RATE OF C                                                                LIMB WILL BE 308 FEET PER MINUTE.

## 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 CHI98LA178](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI98LA178), May 28, 1998: Cessna 414 (N888AA), North Platte, NE, destroyed. Probable cause: the slipped number two bearing in the airplane's right engine, which blocked the bearing's oil feed line, causing the bearing and the crankshaft to overheat and fracture. A factor contributing to…

## Other reports on N888AA (2)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Incident 19890512011439I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19890512011439I), May 12, 1989: Cessna 414 (N888AA), Byron, CA, Minor damage. Right gear collapsed during landing. Investigating possible failure of downlock mechanism.
- [Accident 19790507009579A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19790507009579A), May 7, 1979: Cessna 414 (N888AA), San Francisco, CA, Substantial damage. Taxied into unmarked hole after leaving runway on wrong side of barricade.ATC failed to warn pilot.

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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