Cessna 210M accident near Colorado City, Texas, June 3, 1991
On June 3, 1991 at about 11:58 am local time, a Cessna 210M, registered N777DH, was destroyed in an accident near Colorado City, Texas. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT CONTINUING FLIGHT INTO KNOWN ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS AND EXCEEDING THE DESIGN STRESS LIMITS OF THE AIRCRAFT. FACTORS WERE: THUNDERSTORM, UPDRAFTS AND THE PILOT'S DISREGARD OF THE WEATHER BRIEFING.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 3, 1991 · about 11:58 am local time · cases in 1991
- Place
- Colorado City, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 210M · all 210Ms on the register
- Registration
- N777DH · registry record · serial 21061840
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT OBTAINED A STANDARD WEATHER BRIEFING WHICH CALLED FOR THUNDERSTORMS ALONG HIS INTENDED ROUTE FROM FORTH WORTH-HICKS AIRPORT TO THE MIDLAND AIRPARK. THE LAST CONTACT WITH THE PILOT WAS WHEN HE REPORTED BEING IN A STRONG UPDRAFT BUT ENCOUNTERING NO TURBULENCE. EVIDENCE INDICATES THE AIRPLANE BROKE UP IN FLIGHT. A SHERIFF'S DEPUTY REPORTED THAT AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT, IT WAS RAINING SO HARD HE HTO PARK ALONGSIDE THE HIGHWAY AND WAIT FOR IT TO SUBSIDE.
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: 740 hours in all; 26 in this make and model; 145 in the last 90 days; 49 in the last 30 days; 652 as pilot in command; 233 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,474 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 10, 1990; 605 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-1-3A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: T67 Fort Worth TX at 10:30 am
- Destination: MDD Midland TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N777DH on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 210 Centurion 1,525 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,677 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Continental IO-520-1-3A 9,482 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Hicks Airfield · departed from
- Midland Airpark · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in Texas 6,244 since 1982 · 1,063 in the last ten years
- Texas 29,976 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/DEN91FA079.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.