Cessna T210L accident near Marina Del Rey, California, July 15, 1987
On July 15, 1987 at about 9:28 pm local time, a Cessna T210L, registered N7JT, was destroyed in an accident near Marina Del Rey, California. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- July 15, 1987 · about 9:28 pm local time
- Place
- Marina Del Rey, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna T210L · all T210Ls on the register
- Registration
- N7JT · no longer on the register · serial 21059721
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WEATHER AT DEPT AIRPORT WAS CLOUDS AT ABOUT 900 FT WITH TOPS AT 2,400 FT. BASED ON ATC TRANSCRIPTS AND THE RECORDED RADAR FLIGHT PATH, THE FLT ENTERED THE CLOUDS ABOUT 1 MILE FROM THE END OF THE RUNWAY. SHORTLY THEREAFTER THE FLT ENTERED THE LOS ANGELES TCA. THE SANTA MONICA LOCAL CONTROLLER THEN TOLD THE PILOT HIS POSITION AND ADVISED HIM TO EXIT THE AREA. THE RECORDED RADAR DATA SHOWED THE AIRCRAFT THEN ENTERED A RIGHT 270 DEG TURN FOLLOWED BY A SHARP LEFT TURN. WITNESSES ON A BOAT SAW THE AIRCRAFT IN A STEEP CLIMB ATTITUDE JUST BELOW THE BASES OF THE CLOUDS FOLLOWED BY ROLLING OVER AND DIVING STEEPLY TO THE OCEAN.
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
- Flight time: 1,360 hours in all; 372 in this make and model; 14 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 1,266 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,858 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 11, 1987; 21 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-H (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SMO Santa Monica CA at 9:22 pm
- Destination: SJC San Jose CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 900 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:46 pm from SMO, 4 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| 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.