Cessna 421B accident near Conchas, New Mexico, August 31, 1996
On August 31, 1996, a Cessna 421B, registered N55HU, was destroyed in an accident near Conchas, New Mexico. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadvertent flight into hail which shattered the pilot's windshield and resulted in his incapacitation due to hypoxia.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 31, 1996
- Place
- Conchas, New Mexico · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 421B · all 421Bs on the register
- Registration
- N55HU · registry record · serial 421B0014
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
At 1615, the pilot called FSS for a weather briefing and to file an IFR flight plan. He was told that there was thunderstorm activity, which was building in intensity, extending from Raton, New Mexico, to Garden City, Kansas, with some scattered activity in the Oklahoma panhandle. The briefer further reported that the thunderstorm activity was moving east, southeast. The pilot checked in with Albuquerque Center at 1750 during his departure climb to 21,000 feet. At 1755, convective SIGMET 70C was issued for isolated severe thunderstorms located 10 miles north, northeast, of Las Vegas, New Mexico. FAA Order 7110.65J, Air Traffic Control, section 2-6-2, states that 'controllers shall advise pilots of hazardous weather that may impact operations within 150 NM of their sector or area of jurisdiction.' SIGMET 70C was not given to the pilot by the center controller. Radio contact was lost at 1823. The pilot reported that the airplane was in VMC, approaching precipitation, when they encountered hail and the pilot's windshield was broken out which resulted in the airplane's depressurization.
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: private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,934 hours in all; 67 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,700 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 15, 1995; 15 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,800 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming GTSIO-520-H (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ABQ Albuquerque NM at 11:36 pm
- Destination: 3K1 Alva OK
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
Other NTSB records under N55HU the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.