# Accident 20090505008649A: Cessna 551, Stillwater, OK, May 5, 2009

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 5, 2009, 14:30 local time
- Place: Stillwater, OK
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 36.7333° N, 96.8333° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.7333&lon=-96.8333&mi=10
- Aircraft: N740JB, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N740JB-2010-09-13) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 551 (registry code 2076605, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-551) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada JT15D-4 series (registry code 52112, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-canada-jt15d-4-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 551
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 16,073 total, 169 in this make and model, 24 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN09LA281](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN09LA281) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20090505008649A

## Narrative

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

(-23) THE PILOT STATED THE AUTOPILOT IN THE "ON" POSITION AND FUNCTIONING WHEN HE LEVELED OFF AT 16,000 FEET IN IMC CONDITIONS.  HE STARTED UPDATING HIS APPROACH BOOK, WHICH REQUIRED HIS LOOKING AWAY FROM THE INSTRUMENTS.  WHEN HE NEXT LOOKED AT THE INSTRUMNTS, HE ASSUMED THEY HAD FAILED, AS THEY DID NOT SHOW LEVEL FLIGHT.  HE NOTICED THE ALTIMETER SHOWING A RAPID LOSS OF ALTITUDE.  HE BROKE OUT OF THE CLOUDS AND RECOVERED TO LEVEL FLIGHT AT ABOUT 6,000 FEET.  HE OVERSTRESSED THE AIRCRAFT DURING THE RECOVERY FROM THE RAPID DESCENT CAUSING SUBSTANTIAL STRUCTURAL DAMAGE.  THE PILOT AND PASSENGER WERE UNINJURED.

## 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 CEN09LA281](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN09LA281), May 5, 2009: Cessna 551 (N740JB), Stillwater, OK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's loss of control for undetermined reasons.

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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