Welcome to Flightinfo.com

  • Register now and join the discussion
  • Friendliest aviation Ccmmunity on the web
  • Modern site for PC's, Phones, Tablets - no 3rd party apps required
  • Ask questions, help others, promote aviation
  • Share the passion for aviation
  • Invite everyone to Flightinfo.com and let's have fun

C210T Down - 2 Fatal - Inflight Break-up

Welcome to Flightinfo.com

  • Register now and join the discussion
  • Modern secure site, no 3rd party apps required
  • Invite your friends
  • Share the passion of aviation
  • Friendliest aviation community on the web
I read the NTSB report twice, maybe I'm missing something, where does it say there was an INFLIGHT breakup?
 
Thats kinda erie. A 210 out of KPWK about two months ago broke up in flight over Marion Wisconsin.
 
Man what is it about the last 3 months? I have had probably more TCAS conflict alerts in the last few months than I can remember in this short of a time period.

Just last week I got a release for a stright out to 5000ft clearance with a 5 min void time, started the T/O roll about 30 seconds later and as I climbed through 500 ft I got a TCAS alert from some guy scud running just below the cloud deck. As I rolled into a brisk right turn just before punching into the clouds I saw a guy ginning along in a cherokee at about 800 ft. The bases were at 900. And all of this is under a busy Class B. Also he was flying through the ILS course. There is a private strip in the direction that he was coming from, and the controller said that he just appeared on his scope about 10 seconds before he saw me pop up and make the evasive turn. If you are going to scud run, at least monitor the approach frequencies for the airports you intend to scud run near!!!!

Ok Rant over, Had nothing to do with the 210 but just had to get it out!! Everybody watch yourselves out there. There must have been a special on pilot certificates at Wal-Mart a while back. I am tired of reading about our fellow pilots who are no longer with us.
 
...The tips of the tree limbs and several tree trunks were severed and impact marks were evident at points progressively closer to the ground along the wreckage path prior to the airplane's first contact with the ground... ...The initial ground impact mark containing the main wreckage was located approximately 214 feet beyond initial impact with the trees...

...All major components of the airplane were accounted for at the scene...
 
Last edited:
siucavflight said:
Thats kinda erie. A 210 out of KPWK about two months ago broke up in flight over Marion Wisconsin.
NTSB Identification: CHI05FA016
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Tuesday, October 26, 2004 in Wautoma, WI
Aircraft: Cessna P210N, registration: N5485W
Injuries: 2 Fatal.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed.
On October 26, 2004, about 1125, a Cessna P210N, N5485W, piloted by a private pilot, was destroyed during an in-flight break-up and subsequent impact with terrain near Wautoma, Wisconsin. The personal flight was operating under 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. An Instrument Flight Rules flight plan was on file and was activated. The pilot and passenger were fatally injured. The flight originated from the Palwaukee Municipal Airport, near Wheeling, Illinois, at time unknown and was destined for the Pine River Regional Airport, near Pine River, Minnesota.

Federal Aviation Administration data showed that the flight was in contact with an air traffic controller. Preliminary information showed that the flight advised the controller that it was losing its gyros and needed to go to a lower altitude. The flight reported that it was ok but had a problem a minute ago. The flight then reported it entered clouds. The flight's last transmission was that it was going into a spin. Radar contact was lost at that time.

Two witnesses reported to the Waushara County Sheriff's office that they observed the flight while they were planting trees on their property. In the sheriff's report of their statement, the witnesses indicated that they heard thunder or jets flying. The report showed that they heard a "high winding noise from [the] plane engine". The noise was directly above their position. They heard a loud bang. They reported seeing a plane at about 1,500 to 2,000 feet above ground level. The airplane was observed spinning straight down without its wings. The witnesses indicated that they observed something hanging from its tail section.

At 1154, the Alexander Field South Wood County Airport, near Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, recorded weather was: Wind 060 degrees at 13 knots with gusting to 20 knots; visibility 10 statute miles; present weather light rain; sky condition overcast 1,300 feet; temperature 8 degrees C; dew point 6 degrees C; altimeter30.19 inches of mercury.

At 1153, the Fond Du Lac County Airport, near Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, recorded weather was: Wind 080 degrees at 10 knots; visibility 10 statute miles; present weather light rain; sky condition broken 6,000 feet, overcast 8,500 feet; temperature 10 degrees C; dew point 4 degrees C; altimeter 30.17 inches of mercury.

At 1135, the Clintonville Municipal Airport, near Clintonville, Wisconsin, recorded weather was: Wind 020 degrees at 5 knots; visibility 10 statute miles; present weather light rain; sky condition scattered 1,600 feet, broken 2,200 feet, overcast 6,000 feet; temperature 7 degrees C; dew point 6 degrees C; altimeter 30.24 inches of mercury.

At 1155, the Volk Field Airport, near Camp Douglas, Wisconsin, recorded weather was: Wind 060 degrees at 6 knots; visibility 4 statute miles; present weather light thunderstorms, rain; sky condition scattered 1,500 feet, broken 4,000 feet, cumulonimbus clouds, overcast 6,000 feet; temperature 8 degrees C; dew point 6 degrees C; altimeter 30.16 inches of mercury.

Sections of the wreckage came to rest in the southeast corner of section 10, Township of Marion. The fuselage and engine were found impacted in terrain near the bank of a pond at latitude 44 degrees 02.603' N and longitude 89 degrees 10.335'W. The found wreckage sections were recovered along a path approximately on a 180-degree magnetic heading from the furthest wreckage section to the fuselage. The distance of that path was about 2.4 miles.

An on-scene investigation was performed. The wreckage was recovered and was laid out at a Waushara County facility. All flight controls were recovered except for the left elevator. Inboard sections of both wings remained attached to the fuselage and both those wing sections were deformed upward. Examination of the right side of the vertical stabilizer revealed an indentation consistent with the shape of the wing tip and a paint transfer mark consistent with the paint color scheme on the wing tip. Examination of the right wing tip revealed an abrasion in the area of that paint. Flight control cables were traced and all brakes found were consistent with overload. Flight control cable continuity was established between the control surfaces and the fuselage. Impact damage precluded the cables' verification within the fuselage. The flaps were found in the up position. The landing gear handle was found selecting the gear up position. The auxiliary vacuum pump switch was found in the off position.

The engine was rotated by hand with a lever applying a rotational force on its propeller flange. All cylinders produced a thumb compression. The number four cylinder's exhaust valve push rod was found bent. Removed sparkplugs were tan to beige in color. Rotation of the right magneto produced spark at all terminals. The left magneto sustained impact damage. The left magneto was disassembled. Rotation of the left magneto produced spark at its center electrode. The propeller was found separated from its engine propeller flange. The propeller blades exhibited S shaped bending and chordwise abrasion. The engine tachometer indicated 2686.7 hours. The engine driven vacuum pump was separated from the engine's rear case. The pump housing was found impacted in terrain about a foot below the engine.

The attitude indicator, horizontal situation indicator, and turn coordinator were disassembled. The examination of their gyros revealed rotational scoring.

The engine driven vacuum pump, auxiliary dry air vacuum pump, and their manifold were retained for further examination.
 
jetbluedog said:
Just broke apart at 6,000ft MSL by the sounds of it.......

Crazy way to go, huh?
That's not the "sound of it" to me.

The airplane collided with trees and terrain with the flaps extended to the 20 degree setting, and the landing gear in the down position, while on a magnetic heading of approximately 22 degrees. The airplane came to rest upright at an elevation of approximately 39 feet mean sea level (msl) on a magnetic heading of 202 degrees.

The point of initial impact appeared to be along a line of several pine trees that ran parallel to the wreckage path. The tips of the tree limbs and several tree trunks were severed and impact marks were evident at points progressively closer to the ground along the wreckage path prior to the airplane's first contact with the ground. The outer six-foot section of the right wing was located approximately 152 feet along the wreckage path. The initial ground impact mark containing the main wreckage was located approximately 214 feet beyond initial impact with the trees.

The main wreckage included the cockpit, fuselage, empennage, tail section, the left wing, remaining inboard section of the right wing, and the engine. The cockpit, forward fuselage, and inboard section of both wings were consumed by post-impact fire. All major components of the airplane were accounted for at the scene.

Control continuity was established to all flight controls and the elevator trim tab was found to be at an approximate five-degree tab down setting. The fuel selector was found in the "off" position.
Sounds to me like the airplane impacted trees in a descent while configured (gear and flaps) to land. I suppose we could use some elementary trigonometry to determine a descent gradient since the "impact marks were evident at points progressively closer to the ground along the wreckage path prior to the airplane's first contact with the ground." If it had "broken up in flight" there would not have been a path of destruction some 214 feet long.

My only questions at this point would focus on the fuel selector, and the procedures for its use during descent, approach, and landing. Does it have a LEFT/RIGHT/BOTH/OFF position, is it easy to confuse BOTH with OFF, is it exactly opposite of the fuel selector on the airplanes he had been most recently been flying... was there recent maintenance work where the selector was installed upside down, or placarded incorrectly? Perhaps there were other circumstances that contributed to the error, but ultimately it may boil down to the pilot made an error. In any event, we don't want to make the same error.

The point of studying the accident is not to condemn the pilot, but to determine what mistakes might have been made that can be avoided in the future.
 
SiuDude said:
The father of one of my former students was killed in June in a similar accident:

http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief.asp?ev_id=20040707X00918&key=1

Do you think that the lack of a wing strut has an impact on structural integrity?
Im not an aeronautical engineer, but I would bet the 210 wing is a sturdy as the 206 and 205 wing. Take a look at how thick the wing is in height on a 210, the next time you see one on a ramp...visually compare it to a 182 or 206/205.

NTSB Identification: CHI97FA056 .
The docket is stored in the Docket Management System (DMS). Please contact Public Inquiries
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Tuesday, January 21, 1997 in HIGHLAND, MI
Probable Cause Approval Date: 10/30/1998
Aircraft: Cessna 210N, registration: N29WW
Injuries: 2 Fatal.

At 1755 local time, two instrument rated pilots departed on a night flight from Troy, MI, to Oshkosh, WI. At 1801, they were cleared to climb from 3,000 to 5,000 feet. About 6 minutes later, while cruising about 4 miles south-southwest of Pontiac, MI, radio and radar contact with the airplane were lost. A search was initiated, and wreckage of the airplane was found in the vicinity (near Highland, MI). Investigation determined that the outboard twelve feet of the right wing, and portions of the right elevator and right elevator trim tab separated from the airplane in-flight. Examination of the airframe, engine, and components failed to reveal preexistent anomalies. Weather forecasts and reports indicated turbulence, and temperatures above freezing at the cruising altitude. No preexisting pathology or toxicological findings were found that would have had an effect on the pilots' performance. The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:

in-flight breakup of the airplane for undetermined reason(s).


Full narrative available
 

Latest resources

Back
Top Bottom