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).
Preview. This page is not yet listed for search engines.
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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 25, 1982 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- Eunice, Louisiana · Eunice 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
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number FTW82DA080.