Cessna 310R accident near Cahokia, Illinois, February 2, 2001
On February 2, 2001 at about 10:08 pm local time, a Cessna 310R, registered N4249C, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cahokia, Illinois (St. Louis Downtown Airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The collapse of the left main landing gear during landing roll for undetermined reasons.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 2, 2001 · about 10:08 pm local time
- Place
- Cahokia, Illinois · St. Louis Downtown Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 310R · all 310Rs on the register
- Registration
- N4249C · no longer on the register · serial R1380
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The left landing gear collapsed during landing. The airplane and its landing gear system were inspected and no anomalies were found that could be associated with a pre-impact condition. All fractured portions of the landing gear system had signatures consistent with overload failure. The airplane's left main landing gear collapsed on two prior occasions. The first was on June 27, 1998, and the cause of the gear collapse was undetermined. The second occurrence was on May 15, 2000, and was attributed to the failure of a through-bolt in the gear retraction linkage. The accident flight was the second flight since the maintenance release for the damages that were incurred during the May 15, 2000, accident. The first flight was a maintenance test flight and no anomalies were noted during the flight.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,356 hours in all; 15 in this make and model; 55 in the last 90 days; 21 in the last 30 days; 1,271 as pilot in command; 931 on instruments
- Last flight review: March 31, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 230 hours in all; 0 in this make and model; 5 in the last 90 days; 0 in the last 30 days; 155 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: November 21, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,019.6 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, January 25, 2001; 2.3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,500 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Continental IO-520-M (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Continental IO-520-M (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CPS Cahokia IL at 9:30 pm
- Destination: CPS Cahokia IL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 12R, 6,997 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 21°F (-6°C), dew point 1°F (-17°C)
- Altimeter: 30.37 inHg
- Observation at 9:53 pm from CPS
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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 N4249C the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.