DOUGLAS, AZ, USA
N29133
CESSNA 210L
THE PILOT WAS DEPARTING ON THE FIRST LEG OF A CROSS COUNTRY FLIGHT. THE DENSITY ALTITUDE WAS COMPUTED TO BE ABOUT 7700 FEET. THE PILOT SAID THE WIND WAS SIX TO EIGHT KNOTS DOWN THE RUNWAY. THE PILOT STATED THAT: 'I COMMENCED THE INITIAL TAKE OFF ROLL AND THE AIRCRAFT BECAME AIRBORNE AT ABOUT 80 KNOTS. POWER INDICATIONS WERE NORMAL. AS I RAN OUT OF RUNWAY, I RETRACTED THE WHEELS AND SLOWLY REDUCED THE FLAP SETTING FROM TEN DEGREES TO ZERO DEGREES. I SENSED A FORCED LANDING SITUATION IMPENDING AS THE AIRPLANE STABILIZED AT ABOUT 85 MPH WITH FULL THROTTLE GIVING ONLY PARTIAL POWER.' WITNESSES STATED THAT THE ENGINE SOUNDED NORMAL THROUGHOUT THE BRIEF FLIGHT AND THE AIRPLANE APPEARED TO BE ON THE VERGE OF A STALL/MUSH CONDITION. A POST CRASH EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE AND THE ENGINE SYSTEMS FAILED TO FIND ANY DISCREPANCIES.
On June 13, 1993, at 1335 hours Mountain standard time, a Cessna 210L, N29133, collided with terrain while maneuvering to return to the airport after departure. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the corporate executive flight and no flight plan was filed for the first leg. The airplane received substantial damage. The commercial pilot was not injured. The flight was originating at the time of the mishap for a 24 mile flight to Bisbee Municipal Airport to pick up a passenger, then on to Blythe, California. The pilot stated that: "At approximatly 150 to 200 feet AGL, after a straight out climb, shortly after the wheels and flaps retracted, the engine power deteriorated steadily and uniformly through the airborne time." The pilot stated that he turned towards a selected forced landing area from over the city of Agua Prieta (Mexico) and landed "wheels up" without any personal injuries on the relatively flat, scrubby, desert area he had targetted within the airport boundaries on the USA side of the international border. The pilot had stated that his gross weight at takeoff was about 2997 pounds, with a maximum allowable gross weight of 3800 pounds. He had computed the density altitude to be about 6,500 feet based on a temperature of 100 degrees fahrenheit. The pilot did not state where he had obtained the temperature. The pilot said he performed a complete runup and pre-takeoff checks, with all indications normal, prior to departing on runway 21. At the time of departure the pilot observed the wind as "straight down the runway about 6 to 8 knots." The pilot further reported: "I commenced the initial take off roll and the aircraft became airborne at about 80 knots. Power indications were normal. As I ran out of runway, I retracted the wheels and slowly reduced the flap setting from ten degrees to zero degrees." An instructor pilot witness stated that the density altitude was about 7350 feet MSL, and the winds were light and variable. The witness stated that he watched the airplane from takeoff to landing. He stated that the airplane used most of the runway and after takeoff "appeared to be behind the power curve." He said the engine power sounded normal at all times. An FAA inspector from the Scottsdale Flight standards District Office responded to the accident site. According to his witness interviews, the engine sounded as though it was developing high "normal sounding" engine power. A post crash examination of the airplane by FAA airworthiness inspectors revealed no evidence of a mechanical malfunction or failure in the aircraft or engine.
THE PILOT'S PREMATURE RETRACTION OF THE LANDING GEAR AND FLAPS AT A CRITICAL TIME IN THE TAKEOFF INITIAL CLIMB AND HIS FAILURE TO ATTAIN AN ADEQUATE CLIMB AIRSPEED WHICH RESULTED IN AN INADVERTENT STALL/MUSH CONDITION. A FACTOR IN THE ACCIDENT WAS THE HIGH DENSITY ALTITUDE CONDITION.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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