# NTSB FTW01LA186: Cessna 421B, N5286Z, New Braunfels, TX, August 17, 2001 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: August 17, 2001, 10:15 local (15:15 UTC) - Place: New Braunfels, TX - Coordinates: 29.704444, -98.042221 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=29.7044&lon=-98.0422&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 4 uninjured - Status: Completed, report July 1, 2002 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA Flight Standards District Office - NTSB case key (mKey): 53061 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=FTW01LA186 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/53061/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW01LA186 ## Probable cause the pilot's inadequate flare of the airplane resulting in a hard landing. A contributing factor was the crosswind. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Hard landing, landing - flare/touchdown - weather condition - crosswind (contributing factor) - flare - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - Main gear collapsed, landing - roll ## Analysis During a crosswind landing on runway 13, the twin-engine airplane touched down hard, and the right main landing gear collapsed. The reported wind was from 200 degrees at 11 knots. The pilot did not submit a Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1/2). ## Factual narrative On August 17, 2001, at 1015 central daylight time, a Cessna 421B, twin-engine airplane, N5286Z, sustained substantial damage during a hard landing on runway 13 at the New Braunfels Municipal Airport, New Braunfels, Texas. The airplane was owned and operated by the pilot under Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The private pilot, a pilot rated passenger, and two other passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the cross-country flight, and a flight plan was not filed. The personal flight departed Duncan, Oklahoma, at 0900. The pilot reported to the FAA inspector, who responded to the accident site, that during the crosswind landing, the airplane touched down "hard." Subsequently, the airplane veered to the right, collapsed the right main landing gear, and came to rest with the right wing resting in the dirt off the side of the runway. The FAA inspector found tire marks, gouges, and propeller slash marks in the asphalt runway to the left of the centerline. The structural components of the right main landing gear wheel well were twisted and buckled, and the right wing skin was wrinkled and buckled. The right fuel tip tank was found separated at the aft attachment point. When the aircraft was recovered from the runway, the extension mechanisms, for both main landing gear and the nose landing gear, were found in the "down and locked" position. At 0915 and 1025, the weather observation facility at New Braunfels, reported the wind from 200 degrees at 11 knots. Numerous attempts to obtain a completed Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1/2) were unsuccessful. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N5286Z](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N5286Z-2014-11-19), registration cancelled 2014-11-19, S/N 421B0125, built 1971 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 421B - Registry model: [Cessna 421B](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-421b) (registry code 2076014) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental GTSIO-520 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-gtsio-520-series) (registry code 17046, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 421B0125 - Airframe hours: 9800 - Engines: Continental GTSIO-520-L 375 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: David P. Newman - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: DUC, Duncan, OK - Destination: BAZ, New Braunfels, TX - Airport: BAZ, New Braunfels Municipal, runway 13, 5,352 × 100 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 51; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review February 23, 1998; seat: left; flight hours: 80 total, 80 in this make and model ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 200° at 11 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 2,200 ft broken - Temperature: 84 °F, dew point 73 °F - Altimeter: 30.11 inHg - Observed at: BAZ ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20010817031949A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20010817031949A), Aug 17, 2001: Cessna 421B, Newbraunfels, TX, No damage. (-23) While attempting to land on rnwy 17 pilot changed his mind on short final to land on rnwy 13. Aircraft was in a steep right bank left of center line… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.