Cessna 310Q accident near Pasadena, Maryland, October 19, 1996
On October 19, 1996 at about 3:01 am local time, a Cessna 310Q, registered N8226, was destroyed in an accident near Pasadena, Maryland (Baltimore-Washington airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's inadequate preflight planning/preparation and inadequate management of the airplane's fuel supply, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and a forced landing at night. Factors related to the accident were: an inaccurate fuel quantity indicating system, darkness, and trees in the emergency landing area.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 19, 1996 · about 3:01 am local time
- Place
- Pasadena, Maryland · Baltimore-Washington · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 310Q · all 310Qs on the register
- Registration
- N8226 · no longer on the register · serial 310Q0706
- 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 departed on the first of three legs with an undetermined amount of fuel. He reported to the passenger that the fuel quantity indicating system was inaccurate, but that he knew how much fuel was on board. After flying two legs and purchasing a total of 50 gallons enroute, the airplane departed with what the pilot estimated was a two-hour fuel load for an anticipated one hour final leg to BWI. The passenger reported that the airplane had intercepted the localizer course for the ILS Runway 28 Approach at BWI at 3000 feet. He said, 'All of a sudden the aircraft started yawing violently left to right, because both engines were alternating power, then no power. [The pilot] asked, 'Which engine is failing?' and I said 'they're both failing, you're out of fuel.' He tried to access fuel in the [auxiliary] tanks but there was no fuel anywhere in the aircraft.' Both engines subsequently stopped producing power, and the aircraft descended into wooded terrain. The airplane had been aloft for about 1 hour and 40 minutes when the engines stopped producing power. There was no fuel nor evidence of fuel found at the accident site.
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 multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 9,640 hours in all; 600 in this make and model; 135 in the last 90 days; 40 in the last 30 days; 9,100 as pilot in command; 3,350 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,655 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 1, 1996; 99 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-470 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FCI Chesterfield VA at 1:30 am
- Destination: BWI Baltimore MD
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 28, 9,452 ft by 200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 032° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 4 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:00 am from BWI, 4 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.
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.