Cessna 210L accident near Cascade, Idaho, July 30, 2002
On July 30, 2002 at about 5:00 pm local time, a Cessna 210L, registered N732EK, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cascade, Idaho (Sulphur Creek Ranch airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain the proper rate of descent on short final resulting in a touchdown short of the runway threshold. Contributing factors were the variable winds and swampy terrain at the touchdown site.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 30, 2002 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- Cascade, Idaho · Sulphur Creek Ranch · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 210L · all 210Ls on the register
- Registration
- N732EK · no longer on the register · serial 21061455
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was on short final to runway 28, a 3,300 foot gravel-turf runway, when he encountered a sink and the aircraft began to rapidly settle. He applied power but the aircraft touched down 70 feet short and 30 feet left of the runway centerline and in a swampy/marshy area. Immediately following the touchdown the Cessna 210L's main gear collapsed and the nose gear separated. The pilot reported that immediately following the accident, he observed winds at the airstrip varying 5-10 knots in speed and shifting from a westerly to an easterly direction.
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: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,046 hours in all; 1,355 in this make and model; 16 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 1,982 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 11, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,697 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 15, 2002; 4 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: S07 Bend OR at 3:35 pm
- Destination: ID74 Cascade ID
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 28, 3,300 ft by 40 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.11 inHg
- Observation at 4:50 pm from MYL, 39 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.