Cessna 210M accident near Oakdale, California, October 22, 1985
On October 22, 1985 at about 10:00 pm local time, a Cessna 210M, registered N6047N, was substantially damaged in an accident near Oakdale, California (Oakdale airport). It was a personal flight 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
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
- October 22, 1985 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Oakdale, California · Oakdale · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 210M · all 210Ms on the register
- Registration
- N6047N · no longer on the register · serial 21062915
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT SAID THAT HE MADE A 'FAIRLY RAPID DESCENT' FROM A 10,500 FT MSL CRUISE ALT TO THE AIRPORT PATTERN AND EXPERIENCED A 'PAINFUL PRESSURE' IN HIS EARS. THE PLT SAID HE WAS ALSO WEARING A HEADSET. ON ENTRY INTO THE PATTERN, THEPLT SAID HE 'FORGOT TO LOWER THE LANDING GEAR' AND BELIEVES THAT, DUE TO BOTH THE 'PAINFUL EAR PRESSURE' AND THE MUFFLING EFFECT OF THE HEADSET, THE GEAR WARNING HORN WAS SOUNDING BUT ALL HE HEARD WAS A 'FAINT BACKGROUND PULSE THAT (HE) DISMISSED AS RADIO NOISE OF SOME KIND.'
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: single-engine land
- Flight time: 975 hours in all; 200 in this make and model; 12 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 916 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (expired)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,630 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 1, 1985; 94 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TS10-520 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BIH Bishop CA at 8:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 10, 3,020 ft by 66 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 12,000 ft
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:52 pm from MOD, 11 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.