Cessna 210M N6895B

Summary

On 13 February 2006 at about 00:16 local time, a Cessna 210M registered N6895B was involved in an accident near Long Beach, California, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

13 February 2006 at 00:16

Classification

Accident

Location

Long Beach, California, United States

Coordinates

33.7311, -118.1897

Aircraft

Cessna 210M

Registration

N6895B

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Compton → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

LAX06FA113

1 person was seriously injured.

an erroneous low fuel quantity indication that led the pilot to attempt a precautionary landing in a congested and less than ideal location. The erroneous fuel level indication was due to multiple anomalies with the alternator installation that precipitated a low system voltage and adversely affected the accuracy of the fuel indicating system. The alternator anomalies were the result of inadequate maintenance by unknown persons or institutions.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane collided with shipping containers while attempting to make a precautionary landing at a pier due to a pilot perceived low fuel state. The pilot passed away several months after the accident and was never able to provide a statement. A witness, who saw the crash and responded to the site to render aid, asked the pilot what had happened. The pilot told the witness that he was trying to land due to low fuel state. First responders observed large amounts of fuel leaking out of the damaged wing tanks and from the lower forward fuselage where the header tanks and fuel lines are located. Fuel was still leaking from the airplane when Safety Board investigators arrived 2 hours after the accident. The airframe and engine were examined with no mechanical anomalies noted that would have precluded normal operation. Investigators were not able to establish at what time the pilot departed from Compton or when the pilot had last refueled the airplane. Investigators found that the alternator circuit breaker was tripped. An alternator was found in the wreckage of the cabin and examination revealed that it had a shorted internal diode. The alternator attached to the engine was missing the grounding post and the associated ground wire. The ground strap between the engine and the airframe had been disconnected, with the disconnected end weathered and worn. The airplane manufacturer's technical representative indicated that the fuel level for this airplane is sensed from a variable resistance float assembly that can indicate lower fuel levels than actual as the electrical system voltage drops. Due to the poor condition of the alternator, it is highly likely that the battery was discharging and the voltage level dropping. If that were the case, then the variable resistance float assembly for the fuel gage level would have started to show a lower than expected fuel level indication inside the cockpit leading the pilot to believe that the airplane was experiencing a low fuel state situation. Only partial maintenance records were recovered and the recent maintenance that may have been performed, if any, on the electrical system could not be determined.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.