History of Flight
On September 23, 2009, at 2025 central daylight time, a Cessna T210N, registration N9734Y, impacted trees and an unoccupied home while attempting a go-around at Hilltop Lakes Airport (0TE4), Hilltop Lakes, Texas. The airplane was registered to Moe Transportation, Inc. of South Burlington, Vermont, and operated by a private individual. The personal flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. The airplane was destroyed, and the pilot sustained fatal injuries. No other persons were injured. Dark night visual meteorological conditions prevailed; a VFR flight plan had not been filed. The flight originated from Shreveport Downtown Airport (DTN), Shreveport, Louisiana, at 1911, en route to 0TE4.
The pilot's first flight of the day departed Burlington International Airport (BTV) at 0830 eastern daylight time. He refueled at Flemingsburg-Mason Airport (FGX), Kentucky, departing at 1512 eastern daylight time, and made another refueling stop at DTN before proceeding to 0TE4.
Runway lights at 0TE4 had been inoperative following a lightning strike; the pilot was unaware of this. Several witnesses monitoring the 0TE4 Unicom frequency (122.750 MHz) heard five clicks, consistent with an attempt to activate pilot-controlled lighting. One witness received a static-filled cellular call from the pilot and advised him to use Unicom. Several witnesses heard the pilot's radio call but could not reply. A witness able to transmit informed the pilot that the runway lighting was inoperative. Another witness positioned his car with headlamps illuminating the runway; the pilot acknowledged seeing the car lights. The pilot stated he would attempt landing on runway 34 using the airplane's landing lights to illuminate runway edge reflectors. The pilot approached from the west, flew eastbound over the airport, and entered a right turn for landing. Witnesses noted the pilot was not aligned with the runway and appeared too high. The airplane was approximately 50 to 150 feet above ground level when the pilot transmitted that he was starting a go-around. The airplane almost immediately began descending, struck trees on the right side of the runway, and impacted an unoccupied home, followed by a post-impact fire.
Personnel Information
The pilot, age 57, held a private pilot certificate with airplane single-engine land and instrument ratings. He was issued a restricted third-class medical certificate on April 16, 2008, and completed a biennial flight review on July 28, 2008. A pilot logbook, spanning July 22, 2008, to June 4, 2009, was available; it did not list cumulative night or instrument experience. At the time of the accident, the pilot had an estimated total of 1,276 hours of flight experience, with about 475 hours in the same make and model. The pilot had previously landed at 0TE4 five times, including three night landings when runway lighting was available and conditions were clear or moonlit. His most recent landing at 0TE4 was a daytime flight on February 3, 2009, in clear conditions.
Aircraft Information
N9734Y, serial number 210645883, was a 1981 Cessna T210N, a high-wing, single-engine land airplane with retractable landing gear. Originally equipped with a Continental TSIO-520-R6A engine (310 hp), it was powered at the time by a Continental TSIO-520-PcR(6) engine (310 hp) driving a McCauley three-blade constant-speed propeller. It included a Garmin GNS 430, JP Instruments EDM-700, and Cessna 400B IFCS autopilot. The airplane received a standard airworthiness certificate on December 3, 1981. Annual inspection was completed June 1, 2009, at 3,280.4 hours total time; engine total time was 1,193.6 hours. Last maintenance entry was August 4, 2009, at 3,300.3 hours. The airplane flew about 12 hours after that date. Estimated total time at accident: 3,312 hours; engine total: 1,225 hours.
Meteorological Information
Witnesses at the scene, instrument-rated professional pilots, estimated visibility between 3 and 5 miles in drizzle or light rain, with overcast ceilings from 500 to 2,000 feet. At 2053, Easterwood Field Airport (30 miles southwest) reported wind 010° at 10 knots, visibility 5 miles in rain, overcast at 3,600 feet, temperature 61°F, dew point 54°F, altimeter 30.16 inHg. Sunset was at 1920, end of civil twilight at 1944. Moon was waxing crescent with 27% illumination; moon set at 2228.
Airport Information
Hilltop Lakes Airport (0TE4) is a private airfield requiring prior permission. Runway 16/34 is 3,000 feet long by 40 feet wide, asphalt, with reflectors but no listed lighting. The airport operator's website indicated runway lighting pilot-controlled on 122.750 MHz, but it had been inoperative for weeks due to a lightning strike. No NOTAM was issued, as not required for private airports.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The accident site was in a rural residential neighborhood adjacent to 0TE4, with no streetlights. Main wreckage was near the center of an unoccupied home destroyed by post-impact fire. First impact was a damaged pine tree about 40 feet tall, with the right horizontal stabilizer lodged on top. Debris path was approximately 320 feet long on a 360° bearing. Outboard portions of wings, ailerons, and other components separated; aileron cable fractures were consistent with tension overload. Flap jack screw extension measured 3.75 inches (0–5° flap setting). Elevator trim actuator measured 1.4 inches (approximately 6° tab down). Several seat components and latched seat belt buckles were found; one unlatched seat belt end was present. Elevators and rudder were not observed. No pre-impact anomalies were found that would have precluded normal operations.
Pathological Information
An autopsy performed on September 26, 2009, reported cause of death as "acute traumatic injuries sustained in a plane crash." Toxicological analysis detected no ethanol in muscle or brain, and no drugs in liver; carbon monoxide and cyanide tests were not performed.
Tests and Research
The engine was examined on October 15, 2009. It showed impact and thermal damage; accessories except turbocharger and propeller governor were separated. Crankshaft was intact; connecting rods and counterweights were immobile. Seven of 12 spark plugs were recovered. Propeller blades exhibited bending and melting. No pre-impact engine anomalies were observed.
Additional Information
The source includes excerpts from FAA handbooks regarding spatial disorientation and night flying, but no causal link to the accident is stated.