Cessna 210K accident near Durango, Colorado, June 29, 2003
On June 29, 2003 at about 9:30 pm local time, a Cessna 210K, registered N8264M, was substantially damaged in an accident near Durango, Colorado (Durango-Animas Air Park airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's improper in-flight planning/decision and his failure to maintain aircraft control. Factors contributing to the accident were the high altitude on base turn and final approach, the low airspeed, the pilot's improper use of flaps, the inadvertent stall, the pilot's failure to recover from the bounced landing, the gusting crosswinds, and the high density altitude.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 29, 2003 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- Durango, Colorado · Durango-Animas Air Park · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 210K · all 210Ks on the register
- Registration
- N8264M · no longer on the register · serial 21059264
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot said he was making a right-hand traffic pattern for landing on runway 01. The pilot said as he was coming in, his altitude was high. The pilot said, "I put on full flaps and [the] descent increased to the point [that] I decided to go around. The plane continued to descend and the stall horn started to sound." The pilot raised the flaps to 10 degrees and then bounced off the runway. The pilot said a crosswind turned his airplane toward a hangar. The pilot said he turned the airplane back toward the runway, but "it wouldn't fly and fell to the ground." An examination of the airplane revealed no anomalies. At the time of the accident, the winds recorded at the Durango-La Plata County Airport, 120 degrees at 7 miles from the accident site were 270 degrees at 18 knots, gusting to 21 knots. The density altitude was determined as 9,942 feet msl.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,154 hours in all; 30 in this make and model; 30 in the last 90 days; 19 in the last 30 days; 2,154 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: September 4, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,588.1 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 6, 2002; 87 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520L (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: GRI Grand Island NE at 5:00 pm
- Destination: 00C Durango CO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 01, 5,010 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 18 knots, gusting 21
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.14 inHg
- Observation at 9:53 pm from DRO, 7 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.