Cessna C-310B accident near San Pedro, California, September 7, 1991
On September 7, 1991 at about 1:15 am local time, a Cessna C-310B, registered N5442A, was destroyed in an accident near San Pedro, California. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
AN INFLIGHT LOSS OF CONTROL FOR UNDETERMINED REASONS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 7, 1991 · about 1:15 am local time
- Place
- San Pedro, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna C-310B
- Registration
- N5442A · no longer on the register · serial 35642
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT/MECHANIC COMPLETED AN ANNUAL INSPECTION ON THE AIRCRAFT AND INTENDED TO PERFORM A SHORT TEST FLIGHT OUT OVER THE CHANNEL BETWEEN THE MAINLAND AND AN ISLAND. THE ATCT CLEARED THE AIRCRAFT FOR TAKEOFF AT 1757 HOURS WITH A RIGHT DOWNWIND DEPARTURE. THERE WERE NO DOCUMENTED RADIO CONTACTS WITH THE AIRCRAFT AFTER THE PILOT LEFT THE LOCAL CONTROL FREQUENCY. RECORDED RADAR DATA SHOWED THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTING THE TORRANCE AIRPORT TRAFFIC AREA AND PROCEEDING SOUTH BOUND OVER THE CHANNEL FOR A DISTANCE OF ABOUT 10 MILES. THE TARGET THEN REVERSED COURSE AND WAS HEADED FOR THE MAINLAND AGAIN WHEN THE TARGET TRACK APPEARED TO MAKE AN ABRUPT LEFT TURN AND DISAPPEAR AT A POINT ABOUT SIX MILES SOUTH OF SAN PEDRO. SEVERAL WITNESSES WERE IN BOATS IN THE CHANNEL AT ABOUT THE TIME THE TARGET DISAPPEARED, AND IN THE GENERAL AREA OF THE LAST RECORDED RADAR POSITION. SEVERAL OF THE WITNESSES REPORTED HEARING SOUNDS OF AN ENGINE SPUTTERING THEN THE SOUNDS OF A LARGE SPLASH. ONE WITNESS REPORTED OBSERVING A LOW FLYING AIRCRAFT AT ABOUT 1830 HOURS JUST PRIOR TO HEARING THE LARGE SPLASH SOUNDS. THE WITNESS COULD NOT, HOWEVER, IDENTIFY THE AIRCRAFT MAKE, MODEL OR EVEN SPECIFIC CLASS (SINGLE OR MULTI ENGINE) THAT HE OBSERVED.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 500 hours in all; 25 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,999 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 6, 1991; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,700 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental O-470-M (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TOA Torrance CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 1,500 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.