- Date
- April 20, 1986, 06:45 local (14:45 UTC)
- Place
- Bonners Ferry, ID
- Injuries
- 2 serious, 2 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N70040Cessna 172
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19860420037629A
- Case key
- 40390
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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.
In flight encounter with weather
Terrain condition - mountainous/hillyFactor
Weather evaluation - inadequateCause
Weather condition - mountain waveFactor
Clearance - misjudgedCause
Weather condition - cloudsFactor
Vfr flight into imc - inadvertentCause
In flight collision with terrain/water
Terrain condition - mountainous/hillyFactor
Analysis
The plt utilized updrafts to climb to 7800 ft to clear a mountain ridge which was covered with 'cap clouds'. On the lee side of the ridge a downdraft was experienced and the acft descended into the 'fog'. The plt reported the acft instruments were used to maintain a nose up attitude but the acft continued descending to ground impact.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N70040
- Reported as
- Cessna 172
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17267181
- Airframe hours
- 1,940
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-ED2, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Charles C. Chamberlin
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 20, 1985 · 97 hours before
- Departed
- 65S · Bonners Ferry, ID
- Destination
- ELN · Ellensburg, WA
- Flight plan
- VFR
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 27
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 161 total · 109 in this make and model · 127 as pilot in command · 2 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 0° at 15 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,200 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 36 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.