Cessna 310R incident near West Palm Beach, Florida, October 18, 1986
On October 18, 1986 at about 4:48 pm local time, a Cessna 310R, registered N2638N, suffered minor damage in an incident near West Palm Beach, Florida (West Palm Beach airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 6 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 incident. 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 18, 1986 · about 4:48 pm local time
- Place
- West Palm Beach, Florida · West Palm Beach · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 6 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 310R · all 310Rs on the register
- Registration
- N2638N · no longer on the register · serial 310R1664
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE ON AN ON-DEMAND AIR-TAXI FLIGHT THE PILOT NOTED THAT AT TOUCHDOWN THE RT MAIN GEAR WAS COLLAPSING. HE EXECUTED A GO-AROUND AND ATTEMPTED TO LOWER THE GEAR MANUALLY, BUT COULD NOT. THE PILOT THEN SHUT DOWN THE RIGHT ENGINE AND FEATHERED THE RIGHT PROPELLER AND LANDED. THE RIGHT GEAR COLLAPSED UPON LANDING ROLL. EXAMINATION REVEALED THAT THE ADJUSTABLE SCREW ON THE DOWNLOCK BRACE FAILED IN BENDING OVERLOAD.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,130 hours in all; 65 in this make and model; 285 in the last 90 days; 1,920 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,175 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 26, 1986; 26 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,500 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-BB (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: X04 Orlando FL at 3:45 pm
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 9L, 7,989 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 14 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,500 ft
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:49 pm from PBI
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 5 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N2638N the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.