- Date
- August 16, 1987, 15:14 local (22:14 UTC)
- Place
- Clifton, AZ
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N26596Cessna 421C
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 3, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19870816045579A
- Case key
- 25421
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 flt deptd ry 25 at greenlee cty arpt, Clifton, AZ on a VFR flt to phoenix, AZ. The plt & gnd witnesses rptd that shortly after lift-off, grayish/white smoke emanated from the left engine. The plt was unable to feather the prop, circled the arpt abt 2 times at a low altitude and landed between the runways. The post crash investigation dsclsd the fire originated in the vicinity of the left engine turbocharger. The turbocharger oil line housing was found fractured. The housing was missing when the engines were shipped to teledyne Continental motors (tcm). The engine crates were opened before safety board investigators arrived at tcm to conduct the engine examination. The left engine exam disclsd external high temp distress and minor detonation signatures.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N26596
- Reported as
- Cessna 421C
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 421C1208
- Airframe hours
- 1,611
- Engine
- Continental GTSIO-520, 375 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- Both
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Ops Leasing Company
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 14, 1986 · 226 hours before
- Destination
- DVT · Phoenix, AZ
- Airport
- CFT · Greenlee County, runway 25, 4,985 × 75 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
- 56
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 4,002 total · 2,436 in this make and model · 60 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 250° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 50 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 95 °F, dew point 7 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.