- Date
- June 16, 1989, 11:45 local (18:45 UTC)
- Place
- Herlong, CA
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N4857CCessna T210N
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 5, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890616015999A
- Case key
- 26434
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
Fuel starvation, after the pilot diverted his attention to an electrical problem, and his failure to reposition the fuel selector switch, either before the engine lost power or during emergency procedures. Factors related to the accident were: the tripped alternator circuit breaker, and high obstructions in the emergency landing area.
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
On a previous flt, the acft's elec sys overheated & failed. The plt diverted to bishop, CA, where it was repaired. Aprx 1 hr after taking off on the next flt, the alternator circuit breaker 'popped.' The plt turned off the elec master sw & decided to cont to the destn. However, a short time later, the eng began to surge & subsequently lost power. The plt initiated emerg procedures, but did not recall switching the fuel selector. He mnvrd the acft to land at a nearby arpt, but after extending the gear to land, he realized the acft would not reach the rwy. Before making an off-arpt landing, he saw transmission lines ahead, but had insufficient speed to fly over them. While crossing under the wires to land, the acft hit the gnd & was dmgd. An exam revealed the fuel selector was psnd to the left tank, which contained only ounces of fuel. The rgt tank had an estimated 15 to 20 gal of fuel remaining. When checked, the alternator circuit failed to sustain an elec load at its rated capacity.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4857C
- Reported as
- Cessna T210N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 21063647
- Airframe hours
- 1,407
- Engine
- Continental TSIO-520-R, 310 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- William C. Ealy, doing business as Xebex Development Group, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Michael A. Criste, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 11, 1988 · 193 hours before
- Departed
- BIH · Bishop, CA
- Destination
- 1Q2 · Susanville, CA
- Airport
- Q73 · Herlong, runway 24, 3,260 × 40 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
- 45
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 655 total · 498 in this make and model · 11 in the last 90 days · 8 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 210° at 17 knots
- Visibility
- 100 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.