N210GECessna P210N

On March 8, 2022, at 1417 mountain standard time, a Cessna P210N airplane, N210GE, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Englewood, Colorado. The pilot and flight instructor both sustained minor injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.

The airplane was established on the instrument landing system (ILS) approach to runway 35R as it approached Centennial Airport. The tower controller subsequently instructed them to sidestep to runway 35L. This required the pilot to extend the glide path because the runway arrival thresholds are offset. However, as the pilot attempted to increase engine power, he realized that it was not responding. Attempts to restore engine power by activating the auxiliary fuel pump and changing fuel tanks were not successful. Unable to glide to the runway, the flight instructor executed a forced landing about 1/2-mile short of the runway.

The airplane landed in the grass median area between traffic lanes of an interstate highway and came to rest on a steel-cable safety barrier. A postimpact fire ensued.

The airplane sustained impact damage to the forward fuselage and both wings. The postimpact fire consumed portions of the fuselage, cockpit/cabin area, and right wing. Postrecovery airframe and engine examinations did not reveal any anomalies consistent with an inability of the fuel-injected engine to produce rated power. However, examination of the airframe fuel system was hindered by the extent of the fire damage.

The airplane was equipped with two wing fuel tanks each capable of holding about 44 gallons of useable fuel. The airplane was also equipped with an auxiliary fuel tank, located in the aft baggage compartment, capable of holding about 30 gallons of fuel. Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast (ADS-B) data revealed that the accident flight was 1 hour and 48 minutes in duration. The pilot’s operating handbook indicated that the expected fuel consumption was 18 – 20 gallons per hour during cruise flight. Accordingly, the expected fuel consumption for the flight would be approximately 36 gallons. The pilot reported that the flight departed with 118 gallons of fuel onboard. The airplane was equipped with two wing fuel tanks each capable of holding about 44 gallons of useable fuel. The airplane was also equipped with an auxiliary fuel tank, located in the aft baggage compartment, capable of holding about 30 gallons of fuel.

On February 20, 2021, about 1700 eastern standard time, a Cessna P210N, N210GE, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Bartow, Florida. The commercial pilot was not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.

According to the pilot, the airplane’s engine oil had been changed earlier during the day of the accident. As the airplane climbed through 5,000 ft mean sea level (msl) on the accident flight, he heard a “clicking” sound every minute and noted that the sound occurred simultaneously with a “pegging” of the analog oil temperature and oil pressure gauges to the right, and the ammeter to the left (full discharge). He checked the circuit breakers and fuses, but did not observe any anomalies.

The airplane was at 14,000 ft msl over Gainesville, Florida when the pilot decided to return to the departure airport instead of continuing the flight over mountains at night with a possible electrical problem. The “clicking” sound subsided while returning, and the pilot subsequently extended the landing gear, flaps, and speed brakes. He looked out the window to verify that the landing gear was down but did not look at the gear indicator light on the instrument panel. The airplane touched down on the runway, and the pilot reported that the tail seemed to “fall out” from under him. The airplane leaned to the left and continued in a straight path to a stop. He pulled the mixture control, shut off the master switch and magnetos and egressed. The pilot then walked around the airplane and observed that the nose landing gear was properly extended; however, the two main landing gear had collapsed, resulting in damage to the horizontal stabilizer, left wing and fuselage.

Examination of the airplane revealed that the landing gear hydraulic fluid reservoir was empty. The reservoir was filled with hydraulic fluid, and the airplane was placed on jacks in preparation for a landing gear swing. The electric master switch was turned on and the landing gear handle was moved to the up position. The landing gear retracted normally, and the motor shut off when the landing gear was retracted and locked in position. The landing gear handle was then moved to the down position, and the landing gear moved to the down-and-locked position with the green down and locked light on. A drop of hydraulic fluid was observed on the ground under the left main landing gear after the landing gear was lowered. The inspection panel was removed from the left main landing gear down lock actuator and hydraulic fluid was noticed leaking from the actuator.