# Accident 20180415003709A: Cessna 525, Crozet, VA, April 15, 2018

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 15, 2018, 20:54 local time
- Place: Crozet, VA
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Maneuver
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 38.0978° N, 78.7225° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.0978&lon=-78.7225&mi=10
- Aircraft: N525P, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N525P-2020-09-04) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 525 (registry code 2076601, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-525) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Williams FJ-44 series (registry code 66000, https://openairdocs.org/engine/williams-fj-44-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 525
- Reported engine: WILLIAMS FJ 44-1A
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 739 total, 14 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA18FA127](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA18FA127) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20180415003709A

## Narrative

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

ON THE MORNING OF SUNDAY 04/15/2018, THE PILOT SATISFACTORILY COMPLETED A SINGLE PILOT AUTHORIZATION 61.58 AT KFCI.  THE PILOT DEPARTED KFCI THE NIGHT OF SUNDAY 4/15/2018 WITH NO EXTERIOR PRE-FLIGHT, NO FLIGHT PLAN AND DID NOT GET FLIGHT FOLLOWING NOR MAKE CONTACT WITH POTOMAC NOR WASHINGTON. HOWEVER POTOMAC NOTICED THE AIRCRAFT AND TRANSMITTED IN THE BLIND FROM 0049:51-0055:30 Z.

THE PILOT TOOK OFF AT 2035 LOCAL AND AT 2040 LOCAL AND 36NM NW FROM KFCI HE HAD CLIMBED TO 11525.  HE ALMOST IMMEDIATELY STARTED A RELATIVELY CONSTANT DESCENT, STOPPING AT 4300 AT 2045 LOCAL AND 40NM NW OF KFCI.  DURING HIS DESCENT, AT 2044 LOCAL AND ABOUT 37NM NW OF KFCI AT 5000, HE FLEW THROUGH A LINE OF SEVERE / RED THUNDERSTORMS.  HE STAYED AT 4300 UNTIL 2053 LOCAL AND ABOUT 67NM NW OF KFCI (9 MINUTES AND 30NM FROM THE LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS); WHERE HE THEN STARTED ANOTHER RELATIVELY CONSTANT DESCENT TO THE ACCIDENT SITE, WHICH WAS 70NM NW OF KFCI.  DURING THE LAST FIVE MINUTES, HE WAS ON ROUGHLY A 295-DEGREE HEADING, HOWEVER THE FINAL 33 SECONDS HE ENTERED A LEFT DESCENDING TURN TO 179 DEGREES AND IMPACTED THE GROUND.  WEATHER 13 MILES EAST, AT KCHO AT 2053 LOCAL WAS 1.5 STATUE MILE VISIBILITY, HEAVY RAIN SCATTERED AT 700, OVERCAST AT 1500.  KCHO 160053Z 03006KT 1 1/2SM +RA BR SCT007 OVC015 11/11 A2978 RMK AO2 PK WND 04028/0014 LTG DSNT N E-S RAE03B17 SLP082 P0050 T01110106. WEATHER 13 NW AT KSHD AT 2055 LOCAL WAS 10 STATUTE MILES VISIBILITY, RAIN, BROKEN AT 2000 BROKEN AT 4200.  KSHD 160055Z AUTO 01009KT 10SM RA BKN020 BKN042 OVC048 10/10 A2976 RMK AO2 LTG DSNT E P0034 T01040099.

THE AIRCRAFT IMPACTED THE TERRAIN IN A NEARLY VERTICAL, NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE.  GROUND SCARS AND DEBRIS INDICATE THE WINGS IMPACTING THE GROUND ON AN EAST/WEST LINE WITH THE LEFT-WING POINTING TO THE WEST AND THE RIGHT-WING POINTING TO THE EAST.  THE HORIZONTAL STABILIZER IMPACTING THE GROUND NORTH OF THE WING AND ALSO ON AN EAST/WEST LINE.  AIRPLANE WAS DESTROYED BY IMPACT AND POST-CRASH FIRE.   REMAINS OF BOTH ENGINES SHOWED THEY WERE PRODUCING POWER AT IMPACT AS EVIDENT BY ROTATIONAL CURLING AND HORIZONTAL STRIATIONS OF FAN AND TURBINE BLADES.  ALL MAJOR STRUCTURES AND CONTROL SURFACES WERE FOUND AT THE CRASH SITE.  CRASH SITE WAS 1550' UP THE SSE FACE OF A HILL WITH A TOP ELEVATION OF 2780'.  DEBRIS FIELD EXTENDED 300-400 FEET FROM THE CENTER IMPACT POINT TO THE EAST AND SOUTHEAST RESPECTIVELY.

## 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 ERA18FA127](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA18FA127), Apr 16, 2018: Cessna 525 (N525P), Crozet, VA, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's loss of control while operating in night instrument meteorological conditions as a result of spatial disorientation. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's decision to operate an…

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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