Cessna 404 accident near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, November 13, 1990
On November 13, 1990 at about 2:19 am local time, a Cessna 404, registered N54SA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A FAILURE OF NOSE LANDING GEAR RETRACTION CYLINDER ATTACH POINTS WHICH ALLOWED THE NOSE LANDING GEAR TO COLLAPSE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 13, 1990 · about 2:19 am local time
- Place
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania · Pittsburgh
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 404 · all 404s on the register
- Registration
- N54SA · registry record · serial 404-0426
- 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
THE CESSNA 404 OPERATING ON A CARGO FLIGHT TOUCHED DOWN AND THE NOSE LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED. THE FAA EXAMINED THE AIRPLANE AND FOUND THE ATTACH POINTS FOR THE NOSE LANDING GEAR RETRACTION CYLINDER HAD RIPPED OUT. THE BOLT HOLES SHOWED SIGNS OF WORKING AND WERE WORN. IN ADDITION, THEY REPORTED THE MAINTENANCE MANUAL REFERENCE TO THE AREA IS GENERAL IN NATURE. THE LOCATION OF THE FAILURE IS VERY DIFFICULT TO VIEW DURING INSPECTION DUE TO LIMITED ACCESS.
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: 2,103 hours in all; 50 in this make and model; 60 in the last 90 days; 60 in the last 30 days; 1,963 as pilot in command; 1,576 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,310 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 12, 1990; 33 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,400 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental GTSIO-520-M (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Superior Aviation INC
The flight
- Departed from: CBE Cumberland MD at 1:15 am
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 28R, 10,502 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 290° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 19°F (-7°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.