Ownership guide
Cessna 210L
233 registered in the US, built from about 1971 to 1976, 6 seats, most with the Continental IO-520. Its Airworthiness Directives, its engines', and what to check before buying one.
The fleet
- Registered in the US
- 233
- Built
- 1971 to 1976
- Half built by
- 1974
- Seats
- 6
- Engine type
- Piston
- Most common engine
- Continental IO-520
Engines installed
- Continental IO-520204 aircraft (88%) · 28 ADs, 4 with a repeat action
- Continental TSIO-5207 aircraft (3%) · 45 ADs, 3 with a repeat action
From the FAA aircraft registry, rebuilt daily. Years are those recorded on each registration.
Airworthiness Directives
34 current ADs name the 210L airframe, 1 with a repeat action; 2 more were superseded. Its engines carry 73 more. 12 equipment ADs name the model.
The ones that come back
ADs with a repeat action: an inspection or replacement at an interval, for as long as the AD applies. These are the airworthiness costs an owner keeps paying.
What gets reported
8 Service Difficulty Reports since 2016: a mechanic or operator files one when a part fails or is found defective.
Systems reported most
- Landing Gear Retraction/Extension System2
- Reciprocating Engine Cylinder Section2
- Electrical Power System Wiring1
- Landing Gear Actuator1
- Hydraulic System, Main1
- Landing Gear Door Actuator1
Parts reported most
- Cylinder, cracked2
- Circuit breaker, not closed1
- Wire, broken1
- Landing gear, intermittent1
- Actuator, failed1
- Hydraulic line, failed1
The latest reports
2020-06-04 · Electrical Power System Wiring · Wire, broken
Wire broke in-between voltage regulator and alternator. wire may have chaffed or been under stress.
2020-05-10 · Landing Gear Retraction/Extension System · Circuit breaker, not closed
Pilots reported gear wouldn't come up. returned to base without further incident.
2020-04-19 · Landing Gear Retraction/Extension System · Landing gear, intermittent
Immediately upon rotation departing mqy the green gear indicator light went off. once airborne, the pilot tried to retract the gear, but nothing happened. he then put the gear handle in the down position but he did not get a safe gear indication. he made a low approach to allow the tower to confirm his gear appeared to be down. then he pumped the gear 2-3 times and finally got a green light. he
2019-03-06 · Reciprocating Engine Cylinder Section · Cylinder, cracked
(can) oil noted on lower cowling, inspection showed oil leaking from pushrod housing on nr 1 cylinder. part removed and found to be cracked around 50% of its circumference at the spring retention ferrule.
From the FAA's Service Difficulty Reporting System, refreshed monthly. Counts of what was reported, not failure rates: most of general aviation reports voluntarily, and a busy training fleet reports more than a private one.
Accident record
18 accidents since 2008, 7 fatal (11 people killed in them, a midair counting both aircraft), 4 aircraft destroyed.
What happened
- Loss of control in flight3
- Loss of engine power (total)3
- Electrical system malf/failure2
- Landing gear collapse2
- Loss of engine power (partial)1
- Controlled flight into terrain or object (CFIT)1
Phase of flight
- Initial climb5
- Approach5
- Enroute2
- Landing2
- Maneuvering1
The latest
| Date | Where | What happened | Injuries | NTSB number |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-07-29 | Turks and caicos islands, OF | Initial climb: Unknown or undetermined | GAA25WA220 | |
| 2025-04-03 | Raceland, LA | Approach: Loss of control in flight | Fatal | CEN25FA144 |
| 2023-06-16 | Groote eylandt | Initial climb: Loss of engine power (partial) | Serious | GAA23WA170 |
| 2020-12-21 | Midway, GA | Enroute: Controlled flight into terrain or object (CFIT) | Fatal | ERA21LA085 |
| 2017-10-23 | Darwin aerodrome | Unknown: Unknown or undetermined | Fatal | WPR18WA024 |
| 2017-07-11 | Wilkes-barre/scranton, PA | Initial climb: System or component failure (not the engine) | None | ERA17LA239 |
From the NTSB's aviation accident database, refreshed monthly; accidents only, homebuilts left out. Counts, not rates: nobody publishes how many hours each model flies, and a training fleet flies far more than a private one. Look up any case by its number in the NTSB's CAROL.
What it costs to run
Per hour flown
Per year, flown or not
- Fuel
- $0/hr
- Engine reserve
- $0/hr
- A year
- $0
- All in, per hour
- $0/hr
Everything else is yours to fill in: insurance, hangar and overhaul prices vary too much by pilot, airport and shop for a default to mean anything. Nothing you type leaves this page.
Before you buy one
- Run its N-number through the AD check: every AD that names its airframe and engine, as a checklist to take to the logbooks.
- For each repeat-action AD (1 on the airframe), find the last compliance in the logbooks and when the next one is due.
- Compare the engine's time since overhaul with its maker's published overhaul time, and look for the reason behind any long gap in flying.
- Ask the mechanic doing the pre-buy to look hard at the landing gear retraction/extension system and for cracked cylinders: they are what gets reported most on this model.
- 12 equipment ADs name the 210L (a muffler, a seat belt, a display): find out which of that equipment is installed.
- Check the registration, the airworthiness certificate and the date of the last annual inspection.
- Work out the sales or use tax your state will charge with the aircraft tax calculator.
The rest of the 210 family
Questions
- How many Cessna 210Ls are registered in the US?
- 233, in the FAA aircraft registry.
- When was the Cessna 210L built?
- From about 1971 to 1976. Half of those registered today were built by 1974.
- What engine does the Cessna 210L have?
- Most have the Continental IO-520 (88% of those registered); others have the Continental TSIO-520.
- What are common problems with the Cessna 210L?
- In 8 Service Difficulty Reports filed with the FAA since 2016, the systems reported most were landing gear retraction/extension system, reciprocating engine cylinder section, electrical power system wiring, and the part most often reported was a cracked cylinder.
- How many accidents has the Cessna 210L had?
- 18 in the NTSB's database since 2008, 7 of them fatal. The most common defining event was loss of control in flight. These are counts, not rates: how many hours the fleet flew is not published.
- How many Airworthiness Directives does the Cessna 210L have?
- 34 current ADs name the 210L airframe, 1 of them with a repeat action, and 73 more name its engines. Whether each applies to one aircraft depends on its serial number and installed equipment.
Figures from the FAA aircraft registry and the FAA's Airworthiness Directives, rebuilt daily. An AD listed for a model is one to read; whether it applies to one aircraft depends on its serial number, equipment and records.