Cessna 402B accident near Las Vegas, Nevada, January 28, 1987
On January 28, 1987 at about 8:43 am local time, a Cessna 402B, registered N69310, was substantially damaged in an accident near Las Vegas, Nevada (Mccaran Int'L 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
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 28, 1987 · about 8:43 am local time
- Place
- Las Vegas, Nevada · Mccaran Int'L · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 402B · all 402Bs on the register
- Registration
- N69310 · no longer on the register · serial 402B0428
- 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
PLT FILED IFR, 2+40 ETE. DUE DELAY, PLT DEPARTED VFR AND OPENED VFR FLT PLAN. ENROUTE, STONG HDWINDS ENCOUNTERED. ALSO, CLOUDS REQUIRED ALTITUDE AND COURSE DEVIATIONS TO MAINTAIN VFR. ATE WAS 3+33. ON FINAL, LEFT ENG LOST PWR, RT ENG BEGAN SURGING. INTO 20-KT HDWIND, ACFT LANDED HARD SHORT OF RWY, COLLAPSING GEAR. INVESTIGATION SHOWED FUEL STARVATION. ALL FUEL GAGES ERRONEOUS; MAINS SHOWED 50 AND 100 LBS REMAINING AFTER DRAINING RESIDUAL 1-2 GALS. AUX TANKS WERE NEAR FULL, 20-GAL LOCKER TANK WAS FULL. PLT STATED FLIGHT CONDUCTED ON MAIN TANKS EXCEPT AUX TANKS USED FOR 30-40 MINS ENROUTE. WT & BAL RECORD SHOWED 100 GALS FUEL, BUT PLT HAD ORDERED TOP-OFF (180 GALS).
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,881 hours in all; 223 in this make and model; 385 in the last 90 days; 5,691 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,897 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 19, 1987; 27 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-E (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ABQ Albuquerque NM at 5:10 am
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 19R, 9,776 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 230° at 20 knots, gusting 24
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 18,000 ft; scat at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:52 am from LAS
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.