- Date
- October 28, 2000, 19:55 local (Oct 29, 2000, 01:55 UTC)
- Place
- Santa Teresa, NM
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N5170YCessna T210N
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report November 25, 2003
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 50554
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
the pilot's failure to follow procedures/directives and lower the landing gear for landing. Contributing factors were the damaged propellers making it impossible to perform a go-around, the inadvertent stall to the runway, and the pilot being in a state of fatigue.
Analysis
During the landing flare, the propeller blades began striking the runway, and the pilot realized that he had forgotten to put the landing gear down. He said that he "pulled up on the yoke, applied power, but the three damaged propeller blades prevented a successful go around." The airplane stalled and impacted the runway. The pilot said that he believes that fatigue was a factor. He said that he had been in an intensive flight-training program all week and had been up since 0530 on the day of the accident.
Factual narrative
On October 27, 2000, at approximately 1950 mountain daylight time, a Cessna T210N, N5170Y, was substantially damaged during impact with terrain while the pilot was executing a go-around at Santa Teresa Airport, Santa Teresa, New Mexico. The airline transport pilot, the sole occupant in the airplane, received serious injuries. The pilot was operating the airplane under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the cross-country flight that originated from Wichita, Kansas, approximately 5 hours before the accident. The pilot had filed an instrument flight plan.
According to the pilot, during the landing flare, the propeller blades began striking the runway, and he realized that he had forgotten to put the landing gear down. He said that he "pulled up on the yoke, applied power, but the three damaged propeller blades prevented a successful go around." He said that the airplane stalled and impacted the runway. Subsequently, the engine mounts broke, both wing spars bent, and the fuselage was wrinkled.
The pilot said that he believes that fatigue was a factor. He said that he had been in an intensive flight-training program all week and had been up since 0530 on the day of the accident.
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.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5170Y
- Reported as
- Cessna T210N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 21064106
- Airframe hours
- 3,375
- Engine
- Continental TSIO520R, 310 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Greer W. Craig
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · August 1, 2000 · 17 hours before
- Departed
- ICT · Wichita, KS
- Destination
- 5T6 · NM
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- 5T6 · Dona Ana County Airport, runway 10, 8,500 × 100 ft, asphalt
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
- Injuries
- Serious
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 2,985 total · 457 in this make and model · 2,825 as pilot in command · 58 in the last 90 days · 33 in the last 30 days · 6 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 140° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 72 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- 5T6