- Date
- October 14, 2000, 08:30 local (14:30 UTC)
- Place
- Montrose, CO
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N111KCCessna 310N
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 1, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20001014028549A
- Case key
- 50778
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 pilot's inadequate airspeed on final approach which resulted in a hard landing. A contributing factor was wind shear.
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 pilot said he encountered wind shear on short final and made a "very hard" landing. A National Climatic Data Center representative said that the winds at 0800 were from 150 degrees at 7 knots, and at 0900, calm. The pilot stated that a higher airspeed during landing flare could have prevented the accident. Following the event, the pilot flew the airplane for approximately 8 more hours when a mechanic discovered structural damage to the right wing.
Factual narrative
On October 14, 2000, at approximately 0830 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 310N, N111KC, was substantially damaged during a hard landing at Montrose Regional Airport, Montrose, Colorado. The private pilot, the sole occupant in the airplane, was not injured. The pilot was operating the airplane under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the cross-country flight that originated 45 minutes before the accident from Aspen, Colorado. The pilot had not filed a flight plan.
According to the pilot, he encountered wind shear on short final and made a "very hard" landing. A National Climatic Data Center representative said that the winds in Montrose, Colorado, on October 14, 2000, at 0800 were from 150 degrees at 7 knots, and at 0900, calm. The pilot stated that "a higher speed into round-off/flare" could have prevented the accident.
Following this event, the pilot flew the airplane for approximately 8 more hours (until approximately December 1) when a mechanic discovered structural damage to the right wing.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N111KC
- Reported as
- Cessna 310N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 310N-0005
- Airframe hours
- 3,750
- Engine
- Lycoming TIO-540, 310 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Russell A. Andrews
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 15, 2000 · 148 hours before
- Departed
- ASE · Aspen, CO
- Destination
- MTJ
- Airport
- MTJ · Montrose Regional Airport, runway 17, 10,000 × 150 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
- Age
- 42
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 626 total · 153 in this make and model · 451 as pilot in command · 20 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 117 °F, dew point 73 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MTJ
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N111KC · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.