Cessna P210N accident near Alamosa, Colorado, November 17, 1994
On November 17, 1994 at about 6:00 pm local time, a Cessna P210N, registered N731QH, was substantially damaged in an accident near Alamosa, Colorado (San Luis Valley Regional airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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
FAILURE BY THE PILOT TO PROPERLY JUDGE THE TOUCH DOWN POINT. FACTORS WERE: FAILURE OF THE NOSE LANDING GEAR TO EXTEND AND ROUGH AND UNEVEN TERRAIN.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 17, 1994 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Alamosa, Colorado · San Luis Valley Regional · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna P210N · all P210Ns on the register
- Registration
- N731QH · registry record · serial P21000526
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ON RETURNING TO THE AIRPORT, FOLLOWING A POST MAINTENANCE TEST FLIGHT, THE NOSE LANDING GEAR WOULD NOT EXTEND. THE PILOT CONDUCTED A PRECAUTIONARY LANDING TO A DIRT RUNWAY, WHICH GAVE HIM THE BEST WIND. HE SHUT DOWN THE ENGINE ON SHORT FINAL AND HIS GLIDE FAILED TO REACH THE RUNWAY. THE AIRCRAFT LANDED IN ROUGH AND UNEVEN TERRAIN APPROXIMATELY 50 FEET SHORT OF THE RUNWAY. EXAMINATION OF THE AIRCRAFT REVEALED THE NOSE LANDING GEAR DOWNLOCK SPRING FAILED JAMMING THE NOSE GEAR IN THE RETRACTED POSITION.
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
- Flight time: 2,135 hours in all; 561 in this make and model; 32 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 2,078 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,471 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 11, 1994; 52 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,000 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-P (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ALS at 5:30 pm
- Destination: ALS CO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 3,000 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 22 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 16°F (-9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:56 pm from ALS, 1 miles away
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.