Cessna 310R accident near Buffalo, New York, December 14, 1983
On December 14, 1983 at about 9:08 am local time, a Cessna 310R, registered N87291, was destroyed in an accident near Buffalo, New York (Buffalo Int'L airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was killed. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
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
- December 14, 1983 · about 9:08 am local time
- Place
- Buffalo, New York · Buffalo Int'L · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Cessna 310R · all 310Rs on the register
- Registration
- N87291 · no longer on the register · serial 310R0504
- 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 ACFT COLLIDED WITH LAKE ERIE DURING ILS APPROACH TO RWY 05 AT BUFFALO, NY. THE ACFT HAD BEEN DESCENDED TO 3000 FT AND THE PLT REPORTED TURNING INBOUND FROM DUNKIRK VOR TO THE ILS. HE WAS CLEARED FOR THE APPROACH AND TOLD TO REPORT THE OUTER MARKER TO WHICH HE ACKNOWLEDGED. ABOUT ONE MINUTE LATER THE PLT REQUESTED THE SURFACE WINDS AND AFTER RECEIVING THEM ACKNOWLEDGED WITH AN 'OK'. THERE WERE NO FURTHER TRANSMISSIONS. ATTEMPTS TO RE-ESTABLISH COMMUNICATIONS WERE UNSUCCESSFUL. THE LAST RECORDED RADAR DATA ON THE ACFT AT 0408:42 SHOWED THE ACFT AT AN ALTITUDE OF 2500 FT ON A HEADING OF 55 DEGREES AT 154 KTS AND ABOUT 13 MILES FROM THE AIRPORT. SOME WRECKAGE ASSOCIATED WITH THE ACFT WAS LOCATED BY THE COAST GUARD ABOUT 2 HOURS LATER AT 12 MILES FROM THE ARPT.
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: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,583 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 18, 1983; 96 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,500 lb
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-M (piston); 0 hours total
- Not recorded
The flight
- Departed from: Windsor Locks CT
- Destination: BUF Buffalo NY
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 5, 8,100 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 350° at 6 knots
- Sky: overcast at 300 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°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.