# Accident 20000616008989A: Maule M4210C, Willows, CA, June 16, 2000

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: June 16, 2000, 07:55 local time
- Place: Willows, CA
- Airport: Willows-Glenn County Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: In Traffic Pattern-Circling
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 39.5002° N, 122.2799° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.5002&lon=-122.2799&mi=10
- Aircraft: N377BC, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N377BC-2015-05-20) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Maule M-4-210C (registry code 5460112, https://openairdocs.org/model/maule-m-4-210c) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental IO-360 series (registry code 17025, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-360-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: MAULE M4210C
- Reported engine: CONT IO360D
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Pilot flight hours: 757 total, 149 in this make and model, 12 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX00FA230](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX00FA230) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20000616008989A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) PILOT WAS LANDING MAKING AN APPROACH TO LANDING AT THE WILLOWS-GLENN AIRPORT. DURING THE TURN FROM BASE TO FINAL, AIRCRAFT DESCENDED WITH A STEEP NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE AND COLLIDED WITH THE GROUND.  THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED AND THE PILOT AND PASSENGER WERE FATALLY WOUNDED.  VISUAL METEROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED.  HIGH WIND CONDITIONS WERE PRESENT.                (.4) A WITNESS SAW THE AIRPLANE COMPLETE THE SECOND AND LAST SET OF TWO 360-DEGREE TURNS JUST ABOVE TREETOP LEVEL OVER A HERD OF ANTELOPE AND THEN DESCEND TO GROUND IMPACT IN A STEEP NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE. THIS AIRPLANE WAS THE LAST IN A GROUP OF SIX OTHER AIRCRAFT GOING TO THE SAME DESTINATION. INITIAL RESPONDERS TO THE ACCIDENT SITE SAID THAT A HERD OF ANTELOPE WAS IN THE IMMEDIATE VICINITY OF THE WRECKAGE. INTERVIEWS WITH THE OTHER PILOT'S IN THE GROUP REVEALED THAT BOTH THE PILOT AND PASSENGER WERE AVID ANIMAL LOVERS. THEY HEARD THE PILOT ANNOUNCE IN A NORMAL VOICE THAT HE WAS TURNING DOWNWIND TO BASE ON THE COMMON TRAFFIC ADVISORY FREQUENCY (CTAF). NO OTHER TRANSMISSIONS WERE HEARD FROM THE AIRPLANE. THE GROUND WITNESS SAW THE AIRPLANE FLYING NORTHBOUND AT LOW LEVEL, AND THEN ENTER THE FIRST SET OF STEEP 360-DEG REE TURNS. THE AIRPLANE ENDED THIS MANEUVER DESCENDING TOWARDS THE GROUND IN WINGS LEVEL FLIGHT AND THEN RISING UP AGAIN, WITH A TURN SOUTHBOUND. THE AIRPLANE CLIMBED ABOVE THE TREE LINE, LEVELED OFF, AND THEN ENTERED THE SECOND SET OF STEEP 360-DEGREE TURNS, WHICH CULMINATED IN THE ACCIDENT. WINDS IN THE AREA WERE RECORDED FROM THE NORTH-NORTHWEST AT 32 MPH GUSTING TO 42 MPH. AS THE PILOT TURNED FROM CROSSWIND TO DOWNWIND WHILE IN A STEEP TURN ABOUT THE ANTELOPE HERD ON THE GROUND, IT IS LIKELY THAT THE AIRPLANE ENCOUNTERED STRONG WIND SHEAR LIKE TAILWIND CONDITION, WHICH RESULTED IN AN INADVERTENT STALL/SPIN. THERE WERE NO DISCREPANCIES NOTED WITH THE AIRCRAFT AND ENGINE.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB LAX00FA230](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX00FA230), Jun 16, 2000: Maule M4-210C (N377BC), Willows, CA, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: Failure of the pilot to maintain an adequate airspeed margin while maneuvering in steep turns at low altitude in gusty and strong tailwind conditions, which lead to a wind shear encounter and a…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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