# Accident 20021217035639A: Cessna 208B, Rockford, IL, December 17, 2002

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 17, 2002, 23:04 local time
- Place: Rockford, IL
- Airport: Greater Rockford
- Damage: Destroyed
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Operator: DPUA
- Location: 42.1686° N, 89.1514° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=42.1686&lon=-89.1514&mi=10
- Aircraft: N277PM, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N277PM-2004-07-01) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 208B (registry code 2073701, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-208b) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney PT6A series (registry code 52034, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-pt6a-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 208B
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI03FA041](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI03FA041) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20021217035639A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON DECEMBER 17, 2002 AT 2304 CST, N277PM, A CESSNA 208-B, PILOTED BY PIC DONALD EMMONS CRASHED WHILE EXECUTING A ILS APPROACH TO RUNWAY 7 AT KRFD. THE AIRCRAFT WAS DEMOLISHED AND THE PILOT, THE SOLE OCCUPANT ON BOARD, WAS FATALLY INJURED. N277PM WAS OPERATING AS A CFR 135 ON-DEMAND CARGO FLIGHT. (.19) ON DECEMBER 17, 2002, AT 2251 CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, A CESSNA 208B, N277PM, OPERATED BY PLANEMASTERS AS FLIGHT 1627, COLLIDED WITH THE TREES AND TERRAIN WHILE ON THE ILS RUNWAY 07 APPROACH TO THE GREATER ROCKFORD AIRPORT (RFD), ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS. THE PILOT RECEIVED FATAL INJURIES AND THE AIRPLANE WAS DESTROYED. THE 14 CFR PART 135 CARGO FLIGHT WAS TRANSPORTING CARGO FOR UNITED PARCEL SERVICE AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. THE FLIGHT WAS OPERATING IN INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS AND AN IFR FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE AIRPLANE DEPARTED DECATUR, ILLINOIS, AT 2154. FLIGHT 1627 WAS FLYING THE ILS RUNWAY 07 APPROACH AND HAD BEEN CLEARED TO LAND ON RUNWAY 07 WHEN IT DISAPPEARED FROM RADAR. THE AIRPLANE CAME TO REST APPROXIMATELY 2 MILES WEST-SOUTHWEST OF RFD, JUST NORTH OF THE LOCALIZER FOR RUNWAY 07. THE AIR                                                                        PLANE DESCENDED THROUGH THE TREES FOR A DISTANCE OF APPROXIMATELY 300 FEET PRIOR TO COMING TO REST. THE MAIN PORTION OF THE FUSELAGE WAS LOCATED IN A PLOWED FIELD NEXT TO A TREE LINE. THE MAJORITY OF THE REMAINDER OF THE WRECKAGE WAS LOCATED IN THE WOODED AREA.

## 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 CHI03FA041](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI03FA041), Dec 18, 2002: Cessna 208B (N277PM), Rockford, IL, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane during the ILS approach. Factors associated with the accident were the low ceilings, high winds, crosswind, and wind shear conditions that…

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.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.