# Accident 20111209029109A: Cessna 421C, Sioux Falls, SD, December 9, 2011

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 9, 2011, 14:25 local time
- Place: Sioux Falls, SD
- Airport: Joe Foss Field
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Operator: OW5A
- Location: 43.5922° N, 96.7519° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=43.5922&lon=-96.7519&mi=10
- Aircraft: N421SY, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N421SY-2014-04-18) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 421C (registry code 2076016, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-421c) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 421C
- Reported engine: CONTINENTAL GTSIO-520-L
- People aboard: 4
- Fatal injuries: 4
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot, flight instructor
- Pilot flight hours: 3,848 total, 357 in this make and model, 31 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN12FA100](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN12FA100) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20111209029109A

## Narrative

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

ON DECEMBER 9TH, 2011 AT 1422 CST, A CESSNA 421C AIRCRAFT N421SY OPERATED BY QUEST AVIATION AND PILOTED BY ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^, TOOK OFF FROM JOE FOSS FIELD (FSD) RUNWAY 33. SHORTLY AFTER TAKE OFF THE FSD AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL TOWER CONTROLLER ADVISED THE PILOT A PLUME OF SMOKE WAS TRAILING THE AIRCRAFT; HOWEVER, THE CONTROLLER COULD NOT DETERMINE EXACTLY WHERE THE SMOKE WAS COMING FROM. THE AIRCRAFT BEGAN A LEFT TURN UNTIL HEADING SOUTH AT WHICH TIME THE NOSE DROPPED ABRUPTLY AND IMPACTED THE GROUND IN AN OPEN FIELD 3/4 MILE NORTHWEST OF THE AIRPORT AT 1424 CST. THE PILOT AND 3 PASSENGERS WERE FATALLY INJURED.

## 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 CEN12FA100](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN12FA100), Dec 9, 2011: Cessna 421C (N421SY), Sioux Falls, SD, substantial damage, 4 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed after shutting down one engine, which resulted in an inadvertent aerodynamic stall and impact with terrain. Contributing to the accident was the…

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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