Cessna 401 accident near Lompoc, California, January 26, 1983
On January 26, 1983 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Cessna 401, registered N11JR, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lompoc, California (Lompoc airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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 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 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 26, 1983 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Lompoc, California · Lompoc · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 401 · all 401s on the register
- Registration
- N11JR · no longer on the register · serial 0052
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT WENT OFF THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY DURING LANDING AFTER THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED. THIS WAS AN AIRTAXI FLIGHT AND ONE OF THE PASSENGERS CONFIRMED THAT ALL 3 LANDING GEAR GREEN LIGHTS WERE ILLUMINATED. EXAMINATION OF THE LEFT MAIN GEAR WHEEL WELL AREA REVEALED THE LEFT STRUT BELLCRANK ATTACH FLANGE FORGING AND THE CONNECTING BOLT. P/N WAS 464P4-26 WERE FRACTURED. THE STRUT FORGING FAILED IN TENSILE OVERLOAD. THE CONNECTING BOLT FRACTURED BY TENSILE SHEAR.
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: 15,339 hours in all; 339 in this make and model; 134 in the last 90 days; 15,029 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,761 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 8, 1983; 15 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-E (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SFO San Francisco CA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 7, 3,600 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 120° at 15 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 4,000 ft; not recorded at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.