- Date
- February 8, 1991, 20:55 local (Feb 9, 1991, 04:55 UTC)
- Place
- Petaluma, CA
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N2415SCessna TR182
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report September 28, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910208001889A
- Case key
- 26975
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
The pilot's inadvertent flight into IMC and his failure to maintain aircraft control of the airplane. Factors which contributed to the accident related to the pilot becoming disoriented in the dark, nighttime, instrument weather conditions, and to the pilot's limited experience flying in such conditions.
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 158 hour total time private pilot planned an 18 NM night time flight to visit a friend. The pilot had limited experience flying on instruments, having only 2.6 hours of instrument flying time. On the night of the accident it was dark. The uncontrolled airport was shrouded in ground fog and low level clouds existed nearby. The sky was obscured. The non instrument rated pilot made a low pass over the runway and probably attempted to land. The pilot aborted his attempt, overflew the runway's end and initiated a go-around climb. The airplane gained 150 to 200 feet altitude and entered the base of clouds, according to an eyewitness. The witness stated that he then lost visual contact with the airplane. A few seconds later the airplane reappeared, and it was descending at about an 80 degree angle. The airplane crashed about 1600 feet from the end of the runway.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2415S
- Reported as
- Cessna TR182
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- R18201338
- Engine
- Lycoming 0544L3C5D, 235 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Del Monte Aviation, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Del Monte Aviation, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Unknown · January 2, 2000
- Departed
- STS · Sonoma, CA
- Airport
- 069 · Petaluma Muni, runway 11, 3,600 × 75 ft, asphalt
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
- 39
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Expired
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 158 total · 14 in this make and model · 6 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- Calm
- Lowest ceiling
- 150 ft
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.