ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 364860
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| Date: | Monday 22 July 1991 |
| Time: | 15:00 LT |
| Type: |  Cessna 172P |
| Owner/operator: | Civil Air Patrol, Inc. |
| Registration: | N52433 |
| MSN: | 17274518 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 1467 hours |
| Engine model: | LYCOMING O-320-D2J |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Sylva, NC -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Survey |
| Departure airport: | Sylva, NC (24A) |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
THE PILOT AND TWO OBSERVERS WERE ON A MISSION TO SEARCH FOR MARIJUANA PLANTS GROWING IN A MOUNTAINOUS CANYON. DURING SLOW FLIGHT, THEY ENCOUNTERED A DOWNDRAFT. THE AIRSPEED DECAYED, AND ESCAPE ROUTES FROM THE CANYON WERE NO LONGER AVAILABLE. THE PILOT SLOWED THE AIRCRAFT AND GUIDED IT INTO THE TREES. FOLLOWING THE COLLISION WITH TREES, THE AIRPLANE FELL TO THE GROUND BELOW. THE INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE TEMPERATURE AT THE TIME WAS 92 DEGREES, AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS NEAR MAX GROSS WEIGHT. DENSITY ALTITUDE WAS ABOUT 6,000 FEET. INSPECTION OF THE WRECKAGE REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF MECHANICAL MALFUNCTION OR FAILURE, AND NO MECHANICAL PROBLEMS WERE REPORTED BY THE PILOT.
Probable Cause: THE PILOT'S IMPROPER IN-FLIGHT PLANNING, AND HIS FAILURE TO MAINTAIN A PROPER ALTITUDE WHILE MANEUVERING IN THE CANYON. FACTOR(S) IN THIS ACCIDENT WERE: THE MOUNTAINOUS, BOX CANYON CONDITIONS, THE HIGH DENSITY ALTITUDE, AND THE DOWNDRAFT CONDITIONS AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB ATL91LA139
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 19-Mar-2024 19:37 | ASN Update Bot | Added |
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