- Date
- November 18, 1990, 05:00 local (13:00 UTC)
- Place
- Pullman, WA
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N5184UCessna 206
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report November 23, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19901118051029A
- Case key
- 41294
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 NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
The pilot displayed inadequate inflight planning and decision making. Factors to the accident were: the weather was obscured, the dark night condition, and a proper altitude not maintained.
Analysis
During a cross country flight, the pilot advised ATC that he could not find the airport due to clouds. ATC advised the pilot of the location of the airport and the pilot reported that he saw a clear area northeast of the airport. The flight was last radar identified descending in the area the pilot reported as a clear area. During the on scene investigation, the airplane's wreckage distribution path indicated that the flight was heading in the direction of the airport and in controlled flight. There were no mechanical failures or malfunctions noted.
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.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5184U
- Reported as
- Cessna 206
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 2060184
- Engine
- Continental IO-520-A, 285 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Climbing Out Inc.
- Registered owner
- Unknown
- Departed
- YKM · Yakima, 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
- 44
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 353 total · 312 as pilot in command · 18 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 1 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 500 ft
- Temperature
- 39 °F, dew point 39 °F
- Observed at
- PUW, 4 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.
Other investigations on N5184U · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.