Cessna T210N N6267Y incident near Lubbock, Texas

Probable cause

An unidentified anomaly within the airplane's electrical system. Contributing to the incident was the pilot's failure to manually extend the landing gear.

NTSB analysis

Shortly after takeoff and after raising the landing gear, the electrical components on the airplane started shorting out. The pilot heard "electrical noises" in his headset and smoke entered the cockpit. The pilot turned off nonessential electrical items, declared an emergency with air traffic control, and returned to land. During the approach he cycled the master switch off, then back on, to lower the flaps and gear. He placed the landing gear lever down, but did not attempt to manually lower the gear. During landing the landing gear collapsed, resulting in a scraped underbelly, which was initially reported as substantial damage. The airplane had a previous history of electrical malfunctions and anomalies after a global positioning navigation system was installed in the airplane. After the incident, repairs were made to remove excessive electrical wiring, correct multiple wire splices, reroute wiring, and replace bad connector pins. The source of the electrical anomalies could not be determined.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN09IA057 for the full record.