ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 44246
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| Date: | Wednesday 21 December 2005 |
| Time: | 20:46 |
| Type: |  Cessna 172 Skyhawk |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N7383A |
| MSN: | 29483 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1956 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 1921 hours |
| Engine model: | Continental O-300B |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 4 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Gilroy, CA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | San Martin, CA (E16) |
| Fresno, CA (FCH) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The non-instrument-rated private pilot lost control of the non-instrument-certificated airplane during a dark, night, cross-country flight, in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC). The pilot received a weather briefing, which indicated that visual flight rules (VFR) flight was not recommended due to low clouds and precipitation that were reducing visibilities along his route of flight. The pilot elected to depart on the cross-country flight despite the weather briefing, and despite the fact that the airplane was not equipped with an attitude indicator or a directional gyro. During the accident flight, the pilot reported having trouble finding his bearings and maintaining control of the airplane. The pilot received his private pilot certificate about one-month prior to the accident and accumulated about 120 total flight hours. According to his last flight instructor, they did not review go/no-go decision making or personal minimums. Post-accident examination of the wreckage revealed no anomalies that would have affected the controllability of the airplane.
Probable Cause: The non-instrument rated pilot's poor judgment to fly in dark night instrument conditions, which resulted in his spatial disorientation and loss of aircraft control while maneuvering. Contributing factors were the dark night light condition and the low ceiling.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20051227X02016&key=1
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 28-Oct-2008 00:45 | ASN archive | Added |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:24 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 06-Dec-2017 11:34 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
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