Cessna 310L accident near West Lafayette, Indiana, December 8, 1983
On December 8, 1983 at about 5:43 am local time, a Cessna 310L, registered N2222F, was substantially damaged in an accident near West Lafayette, Indiana. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 8, 1983 · about 5:43 am local time
- Place
- West Lafayette, Indiana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 310L · all 310Ls on the register
- Registration
- N2222F · no longer on the register · serial 310L-0022
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT WAS UNABLE TO START THE ENG WITH THE BATTERIES & MADE A START BY USING AN APU. ABOUT 10 MIN AFTER TAKING OFF, HE NOTICED AN OFF FLAG ON THE HSI. A FURTHER CHECK WAS MADE & HE DISCOVERED THE LEFT ALTERNATOR WAS NOT FUNCTIONING. HE THEN CHECKED THE CIRCUIT BREAKER PANEL, BY FEEL, & PUSHED IN A BREAKER. AT THAT TIME, TOTAL ELECTRICAL FAILURE OCCURRED. AFTER FLYING ABOUT 40 MIN BY USING PARTIAL PANEL PROCEDURES. HE DESCENDED THRU IFR CONDITIONS, SAW A DESERTED/SNOW COVERED STREET & DECIDED TO LAND. HOWEVER, BEFORE DESCENDING, THE ACFT HAD 'PICKED UP SOME ICE,' & WITH NO PITOT HEAT, THE PITOT HEAT TUBE HAD ICED OVER, MAKING THE AIRSPEED INDICATOR INOP. ALSO, WITH ELECTRICAL FAILURE, THE PLT WAS UNABLE TO EXTEND THE FLAPS. WHILE LANDING, THE PLT WAS UNABLE TO STOP BEFORE REACHING THE END OF THE SNOW COVERED STREET & THE ACFT HIT A DIRT BANK & WAS DAMAGED. A EXAM REVEALED A LOOSE CONNECTION ON THE LEFT ALTERATOR, SHORTING ACROSS THE BRUSH LEADS. THE 'Y' CONNECTION ON THE RIGHT ALTERNATOR WAS BURNT/2 WIRES BURNT OFF.
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 single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,944 hours in all; 908 in this make and model; 326 in the last 90 days; 3,808 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,722 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 1, 1983; 2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,200 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-470-V (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DPA West Chicago IL at 4:30 am
- Destination: AID Anderson IN
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 050° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,400 ft; scat at 500 ft
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:50 am from LAF, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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.