Cessna 310Q accident near Norfolk, Nebraska, March 2, 1989
On March 2, 1989 at about 6:30 am local time, a Cessna 310Q, registered N69806, was substantially damaged in an accident near Norfolk, Nebraska (Karl Stephan airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN ADEQUATE AIRSPEED DURING THE LANDING WHICH RESULTED IN AN INADEQUATE FLARE. CONTRIBUTINGTO THE ACCIDENT WERE THE ICING CONDITIONS AND ICE ACCUMULATION OF THE WINGS OF THE AIRPLANE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 2, 1989 · about 6:30 am local time
- Place
- Norfolk, Nebraska · Karl Stephan · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 310Q · all 310Qs on the register
- Registration
- N69806 · registry record · serial 310Q0988
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING AN ILS LOCALIZER APPROACH, THE ACFT LANDED HARD CAUSING SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE TO THE WING SPAR. THE PLT SAID HE HAD ACCUMULATED SUBSTANTIAL ICE ON THE ACFT AND UTILIZED THE DEICING EQUIPMENT SHORTLY BEFORE LDG. HE SAID HE CROSSED THE RUNWAY THRESHOLD AT 100 KNOTS AND REDUCED POWER. THE ACFT PITCHED DOWN SUDDENLY, THEN POWER AND BACK PRESSURE WERE APPLIED TO CUSHION THE LDG. THE ACFT HIT HARD, BOUNCED, THEN SETTLED ON THE RUNWAY. IT WAS THEN TAXIED BACK TO THE RAMP.
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 single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,745 hours in all; 438 in this make and model; 43 in the last 90 days; 19 in the last 30 days; 4,448 as pilot in command; 291 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,337 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, February 22, 1989; 11 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,300 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental 10-470-VO (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Mid Plains Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: DSM Des Moines IA at 5:00 am
- Destination: OFK
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 1, 5,800 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 060° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,300 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 9°F (-13°C), dew point 7°F (-14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:44 am from OFK, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
Other NTSB records under N69806 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.