Cessna 210N accident near Martinsburg, West Virginia, August 3, 1994
On August 3, 1994 at about 9:33 am local time, a Cessna 210N, registered N4875U, was destroyed in an accident near Martinsburg, West Virginia (Eastern W Virginia Rgnl 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
FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN ADEQUATE ALTITUDE AND PROPER CLIMB DURING THE MISSED APPROACH. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: DARKNESS, FOG, AND CONDITIONS CONDUCIVE TO PILOT FATIGUE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 3, 1994 · about 9:33 am local time
- Place
- Martinsburg, West Virginia · Eastern W Virginia Rgnl · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 210N · all 210Ns on the register
- Registration
- N4875U · no longer on the register · serial 21064828
- 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 PILOT DIVERTED FROM HIS DESTINATION AIRPORT TO AN ALTERNATE, BECAUSE OF WEATHER. AT THE ALTERNATE AIRPORT, HE MADE AN ILS RUNWAY 26 APPROACH, BUT DUE TO FOG, HE WAS UNABLE TO LAND. HE MADE A MISSED APPROACH & ELECTED TO CONDUCT ANOTHER APPROACH TO THE SAME AIRPORT. HE WAS UNABLE TO LAND AGAIN. DURING A 2ND MISSED APPROACH, THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED A ROAD ON THE AIRPORT ABOUT 1400' SOUTH OF THE RUNWAY & WAS DESTROYED. IMPACT OCCURRED ON A HEADING OF 273 DEGREES; THE MAIN WRECKAGE CAME TO REST ABOUT 775' FROM THE INITIAL IMPACT POINT. THE GEAR, FLAPS, & SPOILERS WERE IN THE RETRACTED POSITION (THE PLANE WAS MODIFIED WITH SPOILERS). A WITNESS (COMMERCIAL PILOT) HEARD THE AIRPLANE & SAID THAT THE ENGINE WAS AT FULL POWER & SOUNDED NORMAL. A WEATHER OBSERVATION TAKEN AFTER THE ACCIDENT REPORTED VISIBILITY AS 1/4 MILE WITH FOG. THE PILOT HAD WORKED FROM 0800 TO 1730 DURING THE DAY BEFORE REPORTING FOR THE FLIGHT ABOUT 2200. ABOUT 2000 THAT SAME EVENING, HE HAD A TELEPHONE CONVERSTATION WITH A FAMILY MEMBER. DURING THE CONVERSATION, HE DID NOT MENTION ANY PLAN TO SLEEP, ALTHOUGH ONE ITEM OF DISCUSSION WAS THE PLT'S FLIGHT SCHEDULE. THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED AT 0533 THE NEXT MORNING. THE PILOT WAS ON HIS 2ND FLIGHT & HAD FLOWN ABOUT 6 HOURS BEFORE THE ACCIDENT. FAMILY MEMBERS STATED THAT HE OFTEN WORKED ALL DAY BEFORE FLYING AT NIGHT.
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, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,800 hours in all; 38 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days; 4,300 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,357 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 20, 1994; 43 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-550-L1B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: THA Tullahoma TN at 5:35 am
- Destination: HGR Hagerstown MD
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 26, 7,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 0.2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 8,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:32 am from MRB
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.