Cessna P210N accident near Longview, Texas, September 19, 2011
On September 19, 2011 at about 1:57 am local time, a Cessna P210N, registered N4867K, was substantially damaged in an accident during approach (VFR pattern base) near Longview, Texas (Longview 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).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight's inadvertent encounter with a rare and unforecasted mesoscale gravity wave while on base leg, which resulted in a sudden loss of altitude and subsequent collision with trees.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 19, 2011 · about 1:57 am local time
- Place
- Longview, Texas · Longview · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna P210N · all P210Ns on the register
- Registration
- N4867K · registry record · serial P21000349
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The commercial pilot was returning to his home airport at night and entered the traffic pattern on a right downwind leg for runway 18 about 835 feet above the runway elevation. While turning to the base leg from about 735 feet above the runway elevation, the pilot lost visual reference to the horizon due to a frontal air mass about 20 miles northwest of the airport, and he had no visual reference to the ground because he was flying over an unpopulated river bottom. After leveling the airplane on the base leg, the pilot suddenly saw a treetop to the left of the airplane and immediately added full power and initiated a climb, but he was unable to avoid striking trees. The pilot was able to maintain control of the airplane and land safely. The pilot said that he did not feel any wind gusts but thought that he encountered some sort of “downdraft” that resulted in a rapid loss of altitude with no gain in airspeed. A weather study conducted by an NTSB meteorologist revealed that conditions were favorable for the formation of a weather phenomenon known as a mesoscale gravity wave. These waves can result in rapid wind changes and areas of increased windshear and turbulence. The study determined that the wave likely originated from a strong downdraft or microburst from a large thunderstorm complex in central and northeastern Texas then propagated eastward toward the accident site. At the time and place of the accident, the wave dramatically reduced the southerly wind component above the low-level inversion; therefore, it is likely that, as the pilot descended, he inadvertently encountered a sudden wind shift or rapid decrease in the speed of the southerly wind component that resulted in a rapid loss of altitude. A review of available weather information revealed that the mesoscale gravity wave was not forecasted; however, such waves are rare and difficult to forecast. A research study suggests that there is a “poor understanding of gravity waves” and that “acknowledged skepticism of their existence stems from the fact that it is both difficult and tedious to conduct a study of even a single event.” The study further notes that “forecasters have often been misled by the existence of large scale gravity waves.”
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
- Inflight upset during approach (VFR pattern base) defining event
- Other weather encounter during approach (VFR pattern base)
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during approach (VFR pattern final)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Windshear › Effect on equipment
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 1,518 hours in all; 432 in this make and model; 17 in the last 90 days; 3 in the last 30 days; 1,415 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,805 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 1, 2010
- Maximum gross weight: 4,000 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor TSIO-520 SER (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: T H Anderson Pump CO INC
The flight
- Departed from: RFI Henderson TX at 1:30 am
- Destination: GGG Longview TX
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 170° at 15 knots, gusting 21
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 29.88 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 am from GGG, 1 miles away
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.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.