- Date
- March 20, 1988, 10:17 local (15:17 UTC)
- Place
- Quantico, VA
- Injuries
- 3 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N6401NCessna 210N
- Weather
- Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 7, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19880320005879A
- Case key
- 11361
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The acft was abt 25 mi south & inbound to dca when the plt rprtd an enctr with snowshwrs which were part of a cold front. He asked & was clrd to dscnd to 2500 ft so he could maint VMC. Radar data showed, the acft dscndd past 2500 ft to 1300 ft. abt 16 mi south of dca, the plt said he was reversing course to get out of the snowshwrs. He asked & was clrd to climb on top of the wx, but (due to traffic) was restricted to 5500 ft. the plt asked to go to the nearest VMC arpt; however, radio contact was lost after the acft had climbed to 4600 ft. subsequently, an in-flt breakup occurred & witnesses saw the acft dscnd from the clouds in pieces. They said there were strong winds, snow & a low overcast when the acdnt occurred. An exam of the wreckage revealed the wings & stabilizers had sepd in flt from overload failure. The non-instrument rated plt was 1st checked out in type acft abt 3 mos earlier; subsequent flts in type acft were made with an instructor aboard. This was the plt's 1st flt in type acft without an instructor aboard.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6401N
- Reported as
- Cessna 210N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 21062977
- Airframe hours
- 2,694
- Engine
- Continental IO-520-L3, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Atlantic Aero
- Registered owner
- Creed R Smith
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · November 12, 1987 · 100 hours before
- Departed
- GSO · Greensboro, NC
- Destination
- DCA · Washington, DC
- Flight plan
- VFR
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 43
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 256 total · 33 in this make and model · 119 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 7 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Day
- Wind
- 340° at 20 knots, gusting 29
- Temperature
- 39 °F, dew point 28 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MCAF, 1 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.