Cessna T210F accident near Cortez, Colorado, November 24, 1988
On November 24, 1988 at about 11:44 pm local time, a Cessna T210F, registered N6105R, was destroyed in an accident near Cortez, Colorado (Cortez-Montezuma County airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 5 people were killed. 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
- November 24, 1988 · about 11:44 pm local time
- Place
- Cortez, Colorado · Cortez-Montezuma County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 5 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna T210F · all T210Fs on the register
- Registration
- N6105R · no longer on the register · serial T210-0005
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT OBTAINED A WX BRIEFING FROM LAS VEGAS FSS AND WAS TOLD THAT FLT UNDER VFR WAS NOT RECOMMENDED FOR THE PROPOSED FLT TO DURANGO (DRO). THE PLT FILED A VFR FLT PLAN AND DEPARTED LAS VEGAS. OVER PAGE, AZ, HE FILED A PIREP AND WAS AGAIN TOLD VFR FLT NOT RECOMMENDED. N6105R LANDED AT BLANDING, UT (BDG) DUE TO SNOW AND THE PLT AND HIS PASSENGERS HAD THANKSGIVING DINNER WITH THE AIRPORT MANAGER. THE PLT THEN CALLED HIS WIFE IN DRO WHO SAID THE WX WAS OKAY, OBTAINED A WX BRIEFING FROM CEDAR CITY FSS, AND DEPARTED BDG. THE AIRCRAFT CRASHED APPROXIMATELY 2 MILES NNE OF THE CORTEZ AIRPORT, ABOUT HALFWAY BETWEEN ITS DEPARTURE POINT AND ITS DESTINATION. IT CAME TO REST IN A SNOW COVERED RAVINE ADJACENT TO A HIGHWAY. WITNESSES SAID VISIBILITY WAS RESTRICTED DUE TO SNOW, FOG, AND DIMINISHING DAYLIGHT. THE PILOT WAS NOT INSTRUMENT RATED. ANALYSIS OF THE PILOTS GASTROCNEMIUS MUSCLE TISSUE REVEALED 0.057% ETHANOL AND LESS THAN 0.005% TERT-BUTANOL, A FORM OF HEAVY ALCOHOL.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 308 hours in all; 47 in this make and model; 33 in the last 90 days; 245 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,877 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 17, 1988; 55 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,300 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-CCM (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BDG Blanding UT at 10:50 pm
- Destination: DRO Durango CO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 21, 7,205 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 4 |
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.