- Date
- May 31, 1990, 11:15 local (15:15 UTC)
- Place
- Plymouth, MA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N401FCCessna 401
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 23, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900531018239A
- Case key
- 36656
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
Improper maintenance and inspection by maintenance personnel of the left gear torque link attachment.
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 airplane landed normally. The pilot felt a vibration and the airplane pulled left during rollout. He heard a loud snapping sound and the left side of the airplane dropped to the runway. The airplane pulled severely left and departed the runway and stopped in the grass about 30 feet from the runway. Examination of the landing gear revealed a nut, washer, and cotter pin were missing from the left gear torque-link attachment two hours hobbs time after the accident occurred. Work had been performed on the left gear torque link attachment during the last inspection.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N401FC
- Reported as
- Cessna 401
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 401-0211
- Engine
- Continental TSIO-520-E, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Plymouth Air Sales
- Airport
- PYM · Plymouth, runway 24, 3,500 × 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
- 50
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 11,400 total · 400 in this make and model · 11,300 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 10 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 225° at 15 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- -0 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.