Cessna T210L accident near Albuquerque, New Mexico, October 14, 2009
On October 14, 2009 at about 9:58 pm local time, a Cessna T210L, registered N211LC, was substantially damaged in an accident during takeoff near Albuquerque, New Mexico (Albuquerque airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The mechanic's failure to find and repair a leaking main landing gear hydraulic line during an annual inspection.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 14, 2009 · about 9:58 pm local time
- Place
- Albuquerque, New Mexico · Albuquerque · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna T210L · all T210Ls on the register
- Registration
- N211LC · registry record · serial 21060364
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The single-engine airplane had just undergone an annual inspection, which included several landing gear retraction and emergency gear extension tests. The commercial pilot performed an extensive pre-flight inspection before he departed on its first post-maintenance flight and found no anomalies. Shortly after takeoff, as the pilot retracted the landing gear, the hydraulic pump stopped and the "gear-up" light did not illuminate. He then tried to extend the gear and nothing happened. The pilot referenced an inspection mirror on the right wing and realized all three landing gear were dangling between the up and down positions. The pilot stabilized the airplane and used his cell phone to call Cessna Aircraft Company. An engineer provided troubleshooting techniques, but the pilot was unable to secure the gear in the down-and-locked position. The pilot then made a partial gear-up landing, which resulted in substantial damage to the left horizontal stabilizer. The airplane had been modified under a Supplemental Type Certificate in 1987, which removed the main landing gear doors and replaced them with fairings. As a result, some of the landing gear hydraulic lines were capped. A Federal Aviation Administration inspector performed an examination of the airplane and found a hydraulic line in the landing gear system that was not properly capped and was leaking. The line was re-capped and several gear extension/retraction tests were successfully performed. The uncapped line should have been found and repaired during the annual inspection.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power) during takeoff defining event
- Landing gear not configured during landing
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Landing gear/wheel fairing › Inadequate inspection
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Maintenance › Scheduled/routine maintenance › Maintenance personnel
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 2,882 hours in all; 1,200 in this make and model; 3 in the last 90 days; 3 in the last 30 days; 2,816 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 18, 2008
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,366 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 14, 2009; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Cont Motor TSIO-520 SER (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 1N1 Edgewood NM at 7:00 pm
- Destination: ABQ Albuquerque NM
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 26, 13,793 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 14 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N211LC the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CEN10LA014.