Cessna 310 accident near Lincoln, Rhode Island, April 21, 1986
On April 21, 1986 at about 8:30 pm local time, a Cessna 310, registered N128K, was destroyed in an accident near Lincoln, Rhode Island (North Central State Arpt airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- April 21, 1986 · about 8:30 pm local time
- Place
- Lincoln, Rhode Island · North Central State Arpt
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 310 · all 310s on the register
- Registration
- N128K · registry record · serial 35112
- 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 AIR TAXI CARGO AIRCRAFT WAS OBSERVED MANEUVERING OVER THE AIRPORT IN IMC CONDITIONS FOR A VFR APPROACH TO LAND. WITNESSES DESCRIBED AN ABRUPT TURN TO REVERSE DIRECTION OF FLIGHT FOLLOWED BY A NOSE DIVE INTO THE GROUND. THE PILOT, AGE 22, HAD ACCUMMULATED A TOTAL FLIGHT EXPERIENCE OF 4,300 HOURS AND A TYPE RATING IN A LEAR JET. PILOT WAS HIRED 10 DAYS PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT AND WAS OPERATING ON A TEMPORARY AIRMAN CERTIFICATE. THE PILOT'S CERTIFICATE HAD BEEN SUBJECT TO AN EMERGENCY REVOCATION IN AUGUST OF THE PREVIOUS YEAR. ENFORCEMENT ACTION WAS LESSENED TO SUSPENSION OF AIRMAN PRIVILAGES.
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 single-engine; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,300 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme
- Maximum gross weight: 4,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-A1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Active Aero Charter, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: Ypsilanti MI at 5:35 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0, 5,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:47 pm from PVD
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.