- Date
- September 15, 1990, 20:22 local (Sep 16, 1990, 03:22 UTC)
- Place
- Hood River, OR
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 3 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N5332KCessna 172-P
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report November 9, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900915039629A
- Case key
- 41128
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 in command's encountering spatial disorientation and his failure to maintain airspeed.
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 recently cert private pilot who was not rated for inst flt took off at night on a VFR x-country flt into an area of known IMC wx. When the flt encountered adverse wx, the pilot reversed course and attempted to land at an unfamiliar arpt. The acft touched down long and the pilot announced on UNICOM that he was making a go-around. The acft climbed to about 200 ft AGL, stalled and descended nose down until it impacted the ground. Sky was overcast and moderate rain was falling. There was no artificial light in the direction of flt. The pilot had 5 hrs night time and none outside a lighted metro area.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5332K
- Reported as
- Cessna 172-P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17274068
- Airframe hours
- 4,685
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-D2J, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Wings Aloft, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Unknown
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · September 6, 1990 · 21 hours before
- Departed
- DLS · The Dalles, WA
- Destination
- BFI · Seattle, 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
- 26
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 73 total · 7 in this make and model · 14 as pilot in command · 30 in the last 90 days · 17 in the last 30 days · 6 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 300° at 13 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 7,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 54 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- DLS, 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.