Cessna 310F accident near Boulder City, Nevada, January 23, 2000
On January 23, 2000 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Cessna 310F, registered N5801X, was substantially damaged in an accident near Boulder City, Nevada (Boulder City airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The dual student's improper use of the throttles; the flight instructor's inadequate supervision; and the delayed remedial action by the flight instructor. Factors in the accident were the directional control and proper alignment not maintained by the dual student during the landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 23, 2000 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Boulder City, Nevada · Boulder City · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 310F · all 310Fs on the register
- Registration
- N5801X · no longer on the register · serial 310-0101
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight departed for a local area instructional flight with a dual student and passengers onboard. The student pilot was on final approach to the runway, and was approximately 50-feet above ground level, when the flight instructor said he noticed the airplane was descending much too fast. He told the student pilot to add some power but the student pilot added power only to the right engine. The flight instructor took over the controls as the airplane yawed off the runway approximately a wingspan's length. The instructor said he pulled the airplane back to about 20 feet above ground level and crabbed it and flew it back down to touchdown on the runway. A post flight inspection of the airplane revealed wrinkles in the left wing.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 23,998 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 11 in the last 90 days; 9 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,353 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 25, 1999; 49 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,830 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-470 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27L, 4,800 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 22,000 ft; clear
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:56 pm from LAS, 18 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| 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.
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.