- Date
- May 19, 1990, 18:15 local (May 20, 1990, 00:15 UTC)
- Place
- Bluff, UT
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N4807UCessna 205
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 21, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900519018909A
- Case key
- 17930
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
Failure of the pilot to properly select and survey his landing site.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The plt landed at what he thought was an uncharted, unattended dirt airstrip. During the subsequent takeoff attempt, the acft struck an obstruction on the takeoff surface whereupon the plt lost control and the acft departed the side of the takeoff area into trees. The acft sustained substantial damage and the plt was not injured. There was no fire. According to the plt, neither acft deficiencies or wx were a factor in the accident. The acft wreckage and the plt were found the following morning by civil air patrol acft searching due to impact force activation of the accident acft ELT.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4807U
- Reported as
- Cessna 205
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 205-0507
- Airframe hours
- 4,163
- Engine
- Continental IO470-1, 260 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- James M. Wilson
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 2, 1990 · 5 hours before
- Destination
- U07 · Bullfrog, UT
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 37
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 470 total · 286 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 135° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point -0 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.