- Date
- June 9, 1990, 13:30 local (20:30 UTC)
- Place
- Onalaska, WA
- Injuries
- 3 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N68DGLake LA-4
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 5, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900609042269A
- Case key
- 41126
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
Improper in-flight planning/decision by the pilot, and his inadvertent flight into instrument meteorological conditions (IMC). Factors related to the accident were: the adverse weather and terrain 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
Before depg on a flt from newport, OR, to renton WA, the plt obtained a wx briefing. He was adzd that the wx was marginal VFR & forecast to be variable IMC along the route. He did not declare his intentions or file a flt plan, but took off about 2 hrs later. When the acft did not arrive, a search was made. It was not found until 8/24/90. The plane had crashed on wooded/moutainous terrain, near the head of a canyon at an elev of about 1800'. Impact occurred on a heading of 165 deg; entrance to the canyon was south of the crash site. No preimpact part failure or malfunction of the acft or eng was found. Aprx 16 mi ssw at toledo (elev 371'), the 1345 PDT wx was in part: 1200' ovc, 8 mi vis with light rain, wind from 330 deg at 9 KTS.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N68DG
- Reported as
- Lake LA-4
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 382
- Airframe hours
- 1,196
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Walter D. Gaines
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 1, 1989 · 77 hours before
- Departed
- ONP · Newport, OR
- Destination
- RNT · Renton, WA
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
- 51
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 7,000 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 330° at 9 knots
- Temperature
- 55 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- T09, 16 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.