Cessna 210L N2444S

Summary

On 14 November 2002 at about 22:34 local time, a Cessna 210L registered N2444S was involved in an accident near Rochester, New York, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

14 November 2002 at 22:34

Classification

Accident

Location

Rochester, New York, United States

Nearest airport

Greater Rochester Internationa (ROC)

Coordinates

43.1194, -77.6317

Aircraft

Cessna 210L

Registration

N2444S

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Business

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Pittsburgh → Rochester

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

NYC03FA020

1 person died.

A loss of engine power for undetermined reasons. A factor in this accident was the night light condition which precluded the pilot's ability to adequately view suitable forced landing areas.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

After about 1 hour en route, the pilot contacted the air traffic control tower and was cleared to land. About 2 minutes later, the pilot reported he lost engine power and was "looking for a good spot to land." Several witnesses observed the airplane flying very low and descending. Some witnesses reported nothing unusual regarding the sound of the airplane's engine; however, other witnesses reported the engine was "running rough," "cutting in-and-out," or "quiet." The airplane was observed to strike a fence, impact the ground, and burst into flames. Examination of the wreckage, which was extensively damaged during the post-impact fire, did not revealed any pre-impact mechanical failures. According to refueling records, the airplane was "topped-off" with 32 gallons of 100 low-lead aviation gasoline prior to takeoff. During an interview, the lineman who performed the refueling said that approximately 42 aircraft were re-fueled from the same fuel truck, which included 14 aircraft after the accident airplane. He was not aware of any pilots reporting a fuel related problem. In addition, post accident fuel samples taken from the fuel truck nozzle, filter and sump, were absent of contaminates. The accident occurred during night visual meteorological conditions.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.