Cessna 310 accident near Glenwood, New Mexico, December 21, 2007
On December 21, 2007 at about 10:00 pm local time, a Cessna 310, registered N28836, was destroyed in an accident near Glenwood, New Mexico. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A loss of control for undetermined reasons. Contributing to the accident was the marginal weather conditions in the area at the time of the accident.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 21, 2007 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Glenwood, New Mexico · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- not recorded
- Aircraft
- Cessna 310 · all 310s on the register
- Registration
- N28836 · no longer on the register · serial 35310
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The accident airplane was seized by authorities on December 20, 2007, and then reported missing/stolen about two weeks later. The airplane wreckage was discovered by hikers in May 2008, about 711 nautical miles from the airport where it was last seen. A fuel receipt was found, indicating that the airplane had been refueled with $100.62 worth of fuel, approximately half-way between the accident site and its departure airfield. The wreckage was reportedly scattered in a heavily forested area. Additionally, the airplane is reported to have impacted numerous trees before coming to rest at the base of a large tree. The accident site was absent indications of a post-crash fire. A review of weather conditions showed a strong cold front and associated deep trough aloft moving through the region on December 21. Additionally, patchy instrument flight rules/marginal visual flight rules with light rain or snow over western New Mexico and northeastern Arizona existed. The high terrain near the accident site (about 10,000 feet) was likely obscured at the accident time. An AIRMET (Airmen's Meteorological Information), weather advisory had been issued for mountain obscuration and moderate turbulence for the accident region. The commercial pilot and instructor certificates for the pilot had been revoked, and records indicate his last flight medical was on March 15, 1995.
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: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine
- Flight time: 1,500 hours in all
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: unk
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental O-470 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MIO Miami OK
- Destination: Unknown
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: not reported
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.