NTSB Factual Report

HISTORY OF FLIGHT

On April 9, 2009, at 0756 central daylight time, a Cessna T210N, N127TC, owned and piloted by a private pilot, was destroyed when it impacted the ground in an orange grove near Edinburg, Texas, after reporting an engine issue. A post impact fire ensued. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The business flight was being conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 on a visual flight rules flight plan. The private pilot was fatally injured. The local flight departed McAllen Miller International Airport (KMFE), McAllen, Texas, at 0750, and was en route to Sugarland Regional Airport (KSGR), Houston, Texas.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the pilot had just departed KMFE and was in radio contact with the Corpus Christi air traffic control tower. At 0752:30 the pilot reported an altitude of 900 feet, climbing to an altitude of five thousand five hundred feet. At 0754:40 the pilot reported that he was “experiencing some engine problems” and that he intended to land in Edinburg. The controller queried the pilot as to the nature of the issue and at 0755:20 the pilot elaborated that the “engine rpm” would not “maintain” and that he was losing altitude. At 0756:37 the pilot reported that he was not going to make it to Edinburg and at 0756:46 the pilot reported he would “be on ground in problem.” No further communications were recorded from the accident airplane.

The Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Department took witness statements from five individuals. The National Transportation Safety Board (Safety Board) interviewed four additional witnesses. These witnesses were located south of the impact location. According to one witness, the airplane was observed flying low to the ground 1.7 miles from the initial impact point. Another witness stated that the engine sounded "rough" and was "sputtering." Several other witnesses observed the airplane impact the lines closest to the orange grove. One witness elaborated that the wings were “wobbling, the tail was low, and it looked like it was trying to go up.”

PERSONNEL INFORMATION

The pilot, age 51, held a private pilot certificate with airplane single engine land and instrument ratings last issued on April 2, 2006. He was issued a third class airman medical certificate on February 8, 2008. The certificate contained the limitation "must wear corrective lenses.”

The pilot’s logbook was not located. According to his last application for insurance dated September 8, 2008, he had logged 512.4 hours total time; 250 hours in single engine fixed gear airplanes and 262.4 hours in single engine retractable gear airplanes, all of which was logged in a Cessna 210. The form reflected that the last biennial flight review had been completed on October 20, 2006. A pilot in the area provided documentation illustrating that the accident pilot had completed the requirements of a flight review, in the accident airplane, on October 11, 2008.

AIRCRAFT INFORMATION

The accident airplane, a Cessna T210N (serial number 21063381), was manufactured in 1979. The airplane was registered with the FAA on a standard airworthiness certificate for normal operations. A Teledyne Continental Motors TSIO-520R engine, rated at 310 horsepower at 2,700 rpm, powered the airplane. The engine was equipped with a three-blade, variable pitch Hartzell propeller.

The airplane was registered to Dos Aguilas LLC and was maintained under an annual inspection program. A review of the maintenance records indicated that an annual inspection had been completed on January 19, 2009, at an airframe total time of 1,250.7 hours. McCreery Aviation Co., Inc, in McAllen, Texas, performed the inspection. According to the engine logbook, all six cylinders were removed and replaced with new ECi brand cylinders while the airplane was in for this annual inspection. The maintenance log entry reflected an engine total time of 853.7 hours at the completion of this maintenance.

METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS

The closest official weather observation station was located at Mc Allen Miller International Airport (KMFE), Mc Allen, Texas, located 15 nautical miles (nm) south of the accident site. The elevation of the weather observation station was 107 feet mean seal level (msl). The routine aviation weather report (METAR) for KMFE issued at 0753 , reported, winds, 160 degrees at 12 knots, visibility, 10 miles; sky condition, clear; temperature 21 degrees Celsius (C); dew point, 17 degrees C; altimeter, 29.75 inches.

WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION

The wreckage came to rest on an approximate heading of south between two rows of orange trees. Ten to 11 foot tall orange trees in rows of an orange grove, and level terrain characterized the accident site. Terrain elevation was measured at 68 feet msl. The main wreckage consisted of the fuselage, empennage, engine, and the left and right wings.

Four separate wire strike locations, preceding the main wreckage, were documented. The first wire strike location was located 1.5 miles south of the main wreckage. The wires were oriented in an east/west direction spanning across a water canal which was oriented in a north/south direction and were broken. The wires were approximately 35 feet above ground level (agl).

The second wire strike was located 1,433 feet north of the first wire impact. The wires were oriented in an east/west direction spanning across a water canal oriented in a north/south direction and were broken. The wires were approximately 35 feet agl.

A tree preceded the third wire strike area and exhibited broken branches at the top of the tree, scattered in the direction of the accident airplane’s direction of flight. The tree was located approximately 50 yards southwest of the third wire strike location. The third wire strike was located 2,632 feet north of the second wire strike. The lines were oriented in an east/west direction, just to the south of Monte Cristo Road.

The fourth wire strike was located just across the street from the third wire strike. The line(s) were oriented in an east/west direction, just to the north of Monte Cristo Road and just to the south of the orange grove. A portion of the right wing, downed wires, and torn tree branches preceded the main wreckage.

The fuselage, to include the main cabin, cargo area, and instrument panel, was charred, melted, and partially consumed by fire. The flight control cables were exposed along the aft portion of the fuselage and empennage. The left and right main landing gear assemblies were tucked under the airplane, consistent with being in a retracted position. The floor of the cabin, the seat frames, various burned cockpit instruments, and burned personal effects remained in the forward portion of the fuselage.

The following instrument setting was documented:

Kollsman Window – 29.74

The following engine control settings were documented:

Fuel selector handle and valve – left tank

Engine throttle cable – mid range

Engine mixture control – mid range

Engine ignition - both

The right wing was located adjacent to the main wreckage, oriented in a location consistent with the design installation location. The skin of the right wing was charred, melted, and partially consumed by fire. The wing spar was bent aft. The spar, control hinges, and aileron control cables were exposed. The right wing flap was entirely consumed by fire. The right aileron was partially melted. Approximately 70 inches of the outboard portion of the wing remained and exhibited exposure to heat and fire. The leading edge was crushed aft. The fiberglass wingtip separated from the wing assembly and was located south of the wreckage in an orange tree.

The left wing was separated from the fuselage but was located adjacent to the main wreckage, oriented in a location consistent with design installation location. The inboard skin of the wing was charred melted and partially consumed by fire. The outboard 170 inches of the wing remained. The outboard leading edge of the wing exhibited a witness mark or striation pattern that was black in color and consistent with a wire impact.

The aileron control cables extended from their design mounting location in the fuselage through to the left aileron control in the left wing and were continuous. The inboard leading edge of the left wing was crushed and torn and the fuel tank was compromised. No residual fuel was observed in the remains of the fuel tank. Approximately 38 inches of the left flap assembly remained attached to the wing and appeared to be in a retracted position. The inboard portion of the flap was charred, melted, and partially consumed by fire. The outboard portion of the left flap exhibited exposure to heat and fire. The left aileron remained attached to the wing and exhibited exposure to heat and fire. The inboard trailing edge of the wing was crushed inboard and torn.

Approximately 80 inches inboard from the left wing tip a 12-inch section of the wing had black cables wrapped around the wing from forward to aft, two to three times. A portion of the fiber optic line loop device was located on the bottom of the wing in this same location. The flap actuator jackscrew measured 4.4 inches. According to Cessna this is consistent with a retracted flap position.

The empennage, to include the vertical and horizontal stabilizers, the left and right elevator, and the rudder, remained attached to the fuselage. The entire assembly was charred, melted, and partially consumed by fire. The elevator and rudder cables were continuous from the rudder and elevator control surface, forward, to the design mounting location in the forward fuselage.

The engine and propeller assembly separated partially from the airframe and came to rest adjacent to the main wreckage on the "1/3/5" cylinder side of the engine. The engine cowling was crushed, torn, and exhibited exposure to heat and fire. The three-blade propeller assembly remained attached at its design mounting location.

The propeller blades were arbitrarily labeled "A," "B," and "C" for report identification purposes only. Blade "A" remained attached at the propeller hub and extended out 19 inches. The remaining outboard portion of the blade melted and a pool of molten metal was located directly under the remaining tip of the propeller blade. The blade face exhibited 90-degree chordwise scratches. Blade "B" remained attached at the propeller hub and was bowed aft approximately 15 degrees. The face of the blade exhibited 45-degree chordwise scratches and the paint was melted. A two-inch long bend on the leading edge of the blade, three inches inboard from the blade tip was observed. Blade "C" remained attached at the propeller hub and was bowed aft. The face of the blade exhibited 45-degree chordwise scratches and the paint was charred. One leading edge nick was noted towards the propeller hub.

The propeller was removed from the engine at the propeller flange. A gray "sludge" type substance was noted on the internal portion of the propeller flange. The propeller governor was located in a position consistent with "low rpm" and was removed. A substance, similar in color but thinner in consistency to the sludge, was observed within the governor and filter screen.

The top bank of spark plugs on the "2/4/6" side and the lower bank of spark plugs on the "1/3/5" side were removed. The top bank of spark plugs was clean and unremarkable. The bottom bank of spark plugs was covered in engine oil. The blades on the turbo charger rotated freely when activated by hand and were continuous. The oil filter was removed and exhibited clean dark green oil. The internal filter material was free of contaminants. Several drops of fuel were recovered from the engine driven fuel pump and were consistent in smell with 100 LL aviation fuel. The engine was rotated through by hand at the propeller flange. Engine compression was tactilely noted at all six cylinders and impulse magneto activation was noted audibly.

MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION

Valley Forensics P.L.L.C performed the autopsy on the pilot on April 9, 2009, as authorized by the Justice of the Peace for Hidalgo County. The autopsy revealed the cause of death as “charring thermal burns with blunt force head trauma.”

FAA’s Civil Aerospace Medical Institute, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, performed toxicological testing on the specimens that were collected during the autopsy (CAMI Reference #200900076001). Tests for cyanide, ethanol, and selected drugs were negative. Carbon monoxide, at a level of 10 percent, was detected in the blood. According to the autopsy report, this was associated with the post impact fire.

TESTS AND RESEARCH

The engine was secured and shipped to Mobile, Alabama, for further examination. On April 29, 2009, the engine was examined under the auspices of a Safety Board investigator. Representatives from Cessna Aircraft Company and Teledyne Continental Motors were present. The examination revealed no anomalies that would have precluded normal engine function prior to the accident.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

A surveillance video was provided to the Safety Board IIC for review. This video illustrated the arrival and preflight preparations of the pilot, directly involving the accident airplane. FBO ground personnel towed the airplane to the front of the FBO building at 0728 and the pilot arrived at the airplane at 0733. The pilot extended the wing flaps of the airplane and walked around the airplane in a manner consistent with conducting a preflight inspection. The pilot left the airplane at 0736 and returned again at 0739. The pilot started the airplane engine at 0741 and taxied away from the camera at 0744.

NTSB Probable Cause

A loss of engine power for undetermined reasons. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to select a suitable alternate landing site.