Cessna 210-M accident near Sarasota, Florida, February 26, 1990
On February 26, 1990 at about 10:01 pm local time, a Cessna 210-M, registered N525CW, was destroyed in an accident near Sarasota, Florida. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE TOTAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER CAUSED BY CRANKSHAFT FAILURE, DUE TO FATIGUE CRACKING OF UNDETERMINED ORIGIN.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 26, 1990 · about 10:01 pm local time
- Place
- Sarasota, Florida
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 210-M · all 210-Ms on the register
- Registration
- N525CW · no longer on the register · serial 21062438
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE COMMERCIAL PILOT WAS ON INITIAL CLIMB AT 200 FEET AGL FROM THE SARASOTA-BRADENTON AIRPORT, SARASOTA, FLORIDA, WHEN THE AIRPLANE EXPERIENCED A TOTAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER. THE PILOT WAS ON A NON SCHEDULED AIR TAXI FLIGHT IN VFR CONDITIONS. NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE PILOT CONDUCTED AN EMERGENCY DESCENT, AND FORCED LANDING BACK TO THE DEPARTURE AIRPORT. ON LANDING ROLL, THE AIRPLANE EXPERIENCED AN ON GROUND COLLISION WITH A DIRT BANK AND WAS DESTROYED. THE PILOT SUSTAINED SERIOUS INJURIES. EXAMINATION OF THE CRANKSHAFT BY THE NTSB MATERIALS LABORATORY REVEALED THE CRANKSHAFT FAILED DUE TO FATIGUE CRACKING OF UNDETERMINED ORIGIN.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,119 hours in all; 5,276 in this make and model; 232 in the last 90 days; 74 in the last 30 days; 10,046 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,872 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, December 7, 1989; 202 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520L3 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: OPF Opa Locka FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 4, 5,004 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 050° at 18 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; scat at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:50 pm from SRQ
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.