Cessna T210L N591DC
5 April 1998 · Santa Teresa, New Mexico, United States · Minor injuries
Summary
On 5 April 1998 at about 16:00 local time, a Cessna T210L registered N591DC was involved in an accident near Santa Teresa, New Mexico, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 16:00
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Santa Teresa, New Mexico, United States
- Coordinates
- 31.8397, -106.6809
- Aircraft
- Cessna T210L
- Registration
- N591DC
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Instructional
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- FTW98LA173
People
2 people had minor injuries.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Probable cause
failure of the number 1 piston, which resulted in loss of engine power and a subsequent forced landing. The lack of suitable terrain for a forced landing was a related factor.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
During a descent for landing with the power set at 23 inches of manifold pressure and 2,300 rpm, there was a loud noise, and something was observed to come out of the cowling. This was followed by a sudden loss of engine power, severe engine vibration, and light blue smoke in the cockpit. The pilots landed on a dirt road, but the airplane struck a sand dune, bounced, and nosed over. Postaccident engine examination disclosed the #1 piston had broken in half. The top half of the piston remained in the upper (outer) portion of the #1 cylinder. The bottom half of the piston was destroyed. The connecting rod and the cap bolt had separated. The camshaft and its splined end (where it attached to the oil pump) were damaged, and the oil pump had seized. There was 'necking down' of the rod cap bolts, consistent with tension overload. The engine had accrued 1,464.7 hours of flight time since new, and 915.1 hours of flight time since major overhaul.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Cessna T210L accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 Nov 1998 | Cessna T210L | Oakland, California, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 5 Mar 1998 | Cessna T210L | Orleans, Indiana, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 4 Nov 1998 | Cessna T210L | Lodi, California, United States | Johnny W. Morris | Fatal | 1 |
| 26 Mar 1999 | Cessna T210L | Port Angeles, Washington, United States | Wings Aloft | Minor injuries | - |
| 20 Aug 1999 | Cessna T210L | Byron, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 23 Mar 1997 | Cessna T210L | Dillon, Montana, United States | - | Fatal | 4 |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 Jun 1998 | Lockheed SP-2H | Reserve, New Mexico, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 19 Jan 1998 | Martin VARIEZE | Artesia, New Mexico, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 24 Jan 1998 | Piper PA-32RT-300 | Taos, New Mexico, United States | Flight Training Center | No injuries | - |
| 2 Sep 1998 | Air Tractor AT-502B | Portales, New Mexico, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 6 Sep 1998 | Jobe's TE-1 | Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 13 Mar 1998 | Beechcraft 58 | Taos, New Mexico, United States | Ican Enterprises, Inc. | No injuries | - |