Cessna 421B accident near Eunice, Louisiana, February 25, 1982
On February 25, 1982 at about 8:00 pm local time, a Cessna 421B, registered N100CA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Eunice, Louisiana (Eunice Airport). It was an executive or corporate flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 25, 1982 · about 8:00 pm local time · cases in 1982
- Place
- Eunice, Louisiana · Eunice Airport · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 421B · all 421Bs on the register
- Registration
- N100CA · registry record · serial 421B0503
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Executive or corporate flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
SHORTLY AFTER TOUCHDOWN DURING A LANDING. THE LEFT MAIN GEAR COLLAPSED. THE AIRCRAFT THEN VEERED OFF THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY AND STRUCK A DITCH. THE RIGHT MAIN AND NOSE GEAR COLLAPSED AFTER STRIKING THE DITCH. AN EXAMINATION OF THE LEFT GEAR REVEALED THAT A BOLT IN THE LEFT BELLCRANK ASSEMBLY, PN 5041001-5, HAD SHEARED. ALSO, ONE EAR OF THE LOWER CLEVIS ON THE BELLCRANK HAD BROKEN. METALLURGICAL EXAMINATION REVEALED THAT THE FRACTURE CHARACTERISTICS WERE INDICATIVE OF AN OVERSTRESS SEPARATION. RESEARCH OF THE CESSNA 421B LANDING GEAR SYSTEM REVEALED THAT THIS TYPE OF FAILURE COULD OCCUR IF THE LANDING GEAR MECHANISM IS IMPROPERLY RIGGED. HOWEVER, NO DETERMINATION WAS MADE CONCERNING THE ADEQUACY OF THE AIRCRAFT INSPECTIONS.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 6,215 hours in all; 85 in this make and model; 160 in the last 90 days; 6,010 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,535 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 45 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,500 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental GTSIO-520-H (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Performance Air Charter
The flight
- Departed from: Abbeville LA at 1:40 pm
- Destination: Eunice LA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 34, 5,000 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,700 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 140°F (60°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 2:48 pm from LFT, 15 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| 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.
Other NTSB records under N100CA the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N100CA on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 421 Golden Eagle 768 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,683 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Continental GTSIO-520-H 9 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Eunice Airport · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Louisiana 1,272 since 1982 · 188 in the last ten years
- Louisiana 3,735 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N100CA 2 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/FTW82DA080.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.