Cessna 421C accident near San Francisco, California, February 16, 2003
On February 16, 2003 at about 9:52 am local time, a Cessna 421C, registered N321FL, was substantially damaged in an accident near San Francisco, California (San Francisco International airport). It was flown under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The vehicle driver's inadequate visual lookout and failure to follow established procedures. A contributing factor was the dark nighttime condition.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 16, 2003 · about 9:52 am local time
- Place
- San Francisco, California · San Francisco International · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 421C · all 421Cs on the register
- Registration
- N321FL · registry record · serial 421C0207
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
A maintenance truck driver failed to observe an airplane that had just landed and was taxing to the ramp on a course perpendicular to the driver's direction of travel. The westbound truck, that was proceeding on a vehicle access road, collided with the leading edge of the northbound airplane's right wing. During a dark night, the pilot had landed on runway 28R. Thereafter, he received a clearance to taxi to the ramp via a specified route. Approaching the designated parking area, the pilot negotiated a right 90-degree turn and again proceeded in a northerly direction toward a fixed base operator's parking area; the airplane's ground track crossed an airport service road. The truck driver failed to comply with published airport procedures by not yielding to the approaching airplane.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,648 hours in all; 1,181 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 13 in the last 30 days; 5,961 as pilot in command; 1,500 on instruments
- Last flight review: December 23, 2002
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,276 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, November 18, 2002; 80 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,450 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental GTSIO-520-F-K (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BFL Bakersfield CA at 8:55 pm
- Destination: SFO San Francisco CA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 28R, 11,870 ft by 200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 240° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,500 ft
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.01 inHg
- Observation at 9:56 am from SFO
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 4 | |||
| 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.
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.