Cessna 402B accident near Alamogordo, New Mexico, March 7, 1990
On March 7, 1990 at about 2:03 am local time, a Cessna 402B, registered N3128K, was substantially damaged in an accident near Alamogordo, New Mexico (Alamogordo airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 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 COLLAPSE OF THE RIGHT MAIN LANDING GEAR AS A RESULT OF THE MALFUNCTION OF THE DOWN LOCK ASSEMBLY AND FAILURE OF THE TORQUE TUBE BRACKET ASSEMBLY.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 7, 1990 · about 2:03 am local time
- Place
- Alamogordo, New Mexico · Alamogordo · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 402B · all 402Bs on the register
- Registration
- N3128K · no longer on the register · serial 402B-0301
- 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 RIGHT LANDING GEAR MADE A LOUD NOISE DURING RETRACTION AND THE GEAR 'UNLOCKED' LIGHT REMAINED ON. THE COMMERCIAL PILOT OF THE AIR TAXI CARGO FLIGHT FLEW BY A CONTROL TOWER AT HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE FOR A VISUAL CHECK OF THE LANDING GEAR. TOWER PERSONNEL WERE ABLE TO CONFIRM THE GEAR DID NOT APPEAR TO BE LOCKED DOWN. DURING LANDING ROLL, THE RIGHT MAIN LANDING GEAR FOLDED, THE PLANE SWERVED TO THE RIGHT AND CAME TO REST OFF THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. A POSTACCIDENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE TORQUE TUBE BRACKET ASSEMBLY HAD FAILED AND RESULTED IN THE GEAR DOWN LOCK ASSEMBLY MALFUNCTION.
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: 6,378 hours in all; 194 in this make and model; 164 in the last 90 days; 73 in the last 30 days; 6,084 as pilot in command; 2,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,380 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 11, 1990; 99 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520E (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CNM Carlsbad NM
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 21, 7,005 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 190° at 14 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
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.