Cessna P210N accident near Boring, Oregon, November 15, 1996
On November 15, 1996 at about 3:40 pm local time, a Cessna P210N, registered N7823K, was destroyed in an accident near Boring, Oregon. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's attempt to conduct visual flight into instrument meteorological conditions. A factor contributing to the accident was the presence of thick fog.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 15, 1996 · about 3:40 pm local time
- Place
- Boring, Oregon · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna P210N · all P210Ns on the register
- Registration
- N7823K · no longer on the register · serial P21000432
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight was initially conducted on an instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan above an overcast layer of clouds. As the pilot neared the destination airport, he was told by air traffic control (ATC) that there would be a delay in issuing the pilot a clearance for an approach due to other traffic in the area. The pilot elected not to wait. He requested and received vectors to an area of known visual conditions, and then reported that he saw a 'big hole' in the clouds. He canceled his IFR clearance and told ATC that he was going to initiate a circling descent to get underneath the clouds. The airplane dropped below ATC's radar coverage and the pilot was cleared to the destination via his own navigation. About 7 minutes later, the airplane impacted rapidly rising terrain that was shrouded in thick fog.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,000 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 4,000 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-P(6) (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: RBG Roseburg OR at 2:30 pm
- Destination: TTD Troutdale OR
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 500 ft; scat at 300 ft
- Temperature: 43°F (6°C), dew point 41°F (5°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:47 pm from TTD, 6 miles away
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.