Cessna 421B accident near Oceanside, California, August 8, 2007
On August 8, 2007 at about 3:15 am local time, a Cessna 421B, registered N968J, was substantially damaged in an accident near Oceanside, California (Oceanside Municipal airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The collapse of the right main landing gear during the landing roll for undetermined reason, which resulted in a loss of directional control and collision with a fence.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 8, 2007 · about 3:15 am local time
- Place
- Oceanside, California · Oceanside Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 421B · all 421Bs on the register
- Registration
- N968J · no longer on the register · serial 421B0012
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the pilot, he had recently purchased the airplane in Greenville, Mississippi. The airplane had not been flown for several years prior to the purchase, and an annual inspection was completed on the airplane on July 15, 2007. On the morning of the accident, the pilot departed Greenville in the airplane for a cross country flight to his home in California. The accident occurred during landing on the last leg of the flight. During the landing rollout, the right main landing gear collapsed. The pilot was unable to maintain directional control of the airplane, and it departed the right side of the runway and collided with a fence. The reason for the right main landing gear collapsing was not determined.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,000 hours in all; 90 in this make and model; 30 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3
The aircraft
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Continental GTSIO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Continental GTSIO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: P19 Chandler AZ at 1:30 am
- Destination: OKB Oceanside CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 2,712 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.