- Date
- October 19, 2023, 20:42 local (Oct 20, 2023, 03:42 UTC)
- Place
- The Dalles, OR · On hill near airport
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N6308QCessna 152
- Defining event
- Approach-VFR pattern base: Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20231019016489A
- Case key
- 193298
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 encounter with severe turbulence at night which resulted in an extended downwind and collision with wires during the base turn.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot reported that the airplane encountered “extreme” turbulence while on the approach to an intermediate stopover airport during a night cross-country flight. The pilot extended the downwind leg of the traffic pattern to stabilize the airplane, and during the base leg turn, the airplane struck a wire and subsequently impacted terrain. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings and fuselage. The airport is located at an elevation of 246 ft mean sea level (msl) in a major river gorge. The northern ridge line above the airport is about 2,900 ft msl, and the southern ridge line is about 1,300 ft msl. The accident location is located about 2 miles south of the airport at an estimated evaluation of about 650 ft msl. High tension powerlines are positioned south of the airport along the southern ridge. According to the United States Navy Observatory, the official sunset was at 17:12 Pacific daylight time (PDT), the official end of civil twilight was at 17:42 PDT and the official moon set was at 20:02 PDT. The night cross-county training flight was part of the pilot’s training curriculum for her commercial, airplane single engine land certificate. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6308Q
- Reported as
- Cessna 152
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 15285227
- Built
- 1981
- Airframe hours
- 1,840.6
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-L2C, 110 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Hillsboro Aero Academy LLC
- Registered owner
- Hillsboro Aero Academy LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Unknown · October 3, 2023 · 50.9 hours before
- Departed
- KRDM · Redmond, OR
- Destination
- KDLS · The Dalles, OR
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- DLS · Columbia Gorge Rgnl/The Dalles Muni, runway 31, 5,097 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Stall warning system, Electronic flight bag or handheld device, ADS-B
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
- 23
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- October 3, 2023
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 126 total · 71 in this make and model · 70 as pilot in command · 46 in the last 90 days · 11 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Wind
- 310° at 12 knots, gusting 19
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 66 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.95 inHg
- Turbulence
- Moderate
- Observed at
- KDLS, 2 nm away
- METAR
- METAR KDLS 200353Z AUTO 31012G19KT 10SM CLR 19/11 A2995 RMK AO2 SLP143 T01890111=
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 25, 2024, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.9 MB in all.
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 N6308Q · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.