NTSB NYC87LA256 — 1987-09-09 · WILLIAMSPORT, Pennsylvania, United States

Current FAA registration · N4166Q

Make / Model: CESSNA 310N
Engine: CONT MOTOR I0-470 SERIES (260 hp)
Seats / Engines: 6 seats · 2 engines
ADS-B equipped: Yes — Mode-S A4EDA3

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

N4166Q Cessna 310N None

Factual narrative

AFTER LANDING, THE CARGO WAS UNLOADED & THE ACFT WAS PREPARED FOR DEPARTURE. THE PLT STATED THE PREFLIGHT WAS NORMAL & SATISFACTORY. HE RPRTD THAT WHEN THE LEFT ENG WAS STARTED, HE HEARD A LOUD 'POP' & OBSERVED 'FLAME TRACES AND SMOKE.' HE IMMEDIATELY SHUT DOWN THE ENG & EXITED THE ACFT TO INVESTIGATE. HE FOUND THAT ABOUT 4' OF THE OUTBOARD, LEADING EDGE SECTION OF THE LEFT WING HAD EXPLODED & BUCKLED. HE STATED THAT FLAMES & SMOKE WERE VISIBLE & IMMEDIATELY EXTINGUISHED. THE PLT RPRTD THE LEFT FUEL STRAINER CORK GASKET WAS FAULTY. DRY FUEL STAINS WERE FOUND ON THE BOTTOM OF THE LEFT WING, LEFT FLAP, LEFT ENG NACELLE & LEFT LANDING GEAR. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1987_NYC87LA256.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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