Cessna 210 N9574X

Summary

On 30 May 2023 at about 18:15 local time, a Cessna 210 registered N9574X, operated by Flying Nova LLC, was involved in an accident near Tacoma, Washington, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

30 May 2023 at 18:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Tacoma, Washington, United States

Nearest airport

Tacoma Narrows (TIW)

Coordinates

47.2679, -122.5781

Aircraft

Cessna 210

Registration

N9574X

Category

Airplane

Year built

1962

Engines

1

Operator

Flying Nova LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Auburn → Seattle

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR23LA213

Nobody was injured.

A fatigue failure of the left main landing gear hydraulic actuator, which resulted in a loss of hydraulic fluid that prevented the pilot from lowering the landing gear to the fully extended position and maintaining directional control after landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

While on the downwind leg of the traffic pattern, the flight instructor was unable to fully extend the landing gear. The landing gear appeared to be stuck in a transitional position, which the flight instructor attempted to resolve by moving the gear selector back to the gear-up position; however, she observed no movement. After about 1.5 hours of troubleshooting the landing gear, the flight instructor decided to land with the gear partially extended. The airplane touched down with the nose gear locked and the pilot was unable to attain directional control. The airplane veered off the runway, coming to rest in the grass. Examination of the hydraulic system revealed that the left main landing gear hydraulic actuator barrel was fractured adjacent to the end cap. A fracture at the retainer clip groove exhibited striations consistent with fatigue crack propagation, and other fractures through the barrel exhibited signatures of overstress failure. It is likely that, once the fatigue crack grew to a significant depth, the housing cracked further from overstress and hydraulic fluid leaked out of the system, preventing the landing gear from extending properly. The airplane manufacturer had previously issued instructions for modification of some landing gear hydraulic actuators installed on the accident airplane make and model, and an FAA airworthiness directive (AD) was subsequently issued to mandate the modifications. The maintenance records showed that the AD was performed on the accident airplane. This is at least the fourth known failure of this model of actuator that resulted in an accident. The location, size, and physical features of the cracks were consistent among the accidents.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.