Cessna 172N N1048F

Summary

On 17 October 1986 at about 02:38 local time, a Cessna 172N registered N1048F, operated by American Flyers, Inc., was involved in an accident near Altadena, California, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. No probable cause statement is available for this record.

Date

17 October 1986 at 02:38

Classification

Accident

Location

Altadena, California, United States

Coordinates

34.2003, -118.1298

Aircraft

Cessna 172N

Registration

N1048F

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

American Flyers, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Van Nuys → Santa Monica

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

LAX87MA018

2 people died.

The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. No probable cause statement is present in the source data.

Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.

Read the full NTSB narrative

WHILE RTRNG TO SANTA MONICA (SMO) FM A X-COUNTRY, THE PLTS DIVERTED TO VAN NUYS WHEN THE RWY AT SMO WAS CLOSED DUE TO A DISABLED ACFT. AFTER THE RWY WAS REOPENED, THEY FILED AN IFR FLT PLN TO CONT AT 5000' & TKOF AT NGT. DRG DEP, THE AR-3 CTLR PROVIDED RADAR VECTORS (FOR CLNC AT 3000'). AT 1926:39, AR-4 CTLR ACKNOWLEDGED/ACCEPTED AN AUTOMATED HANDOFF VIA AN ARTS-III COMPUTER KEYBOARD ENTRY. AR-3 PROVIDED ADNTL VECTORS TO THE FLT, THE LAST BEING A 080 DEG HDG (AT 1929:12), BUT DIDN'T TELL THE PLTS TO CHG TO AR-4'S FREQ. AT APRX 1933, THE AR-3 & AR-4 CTLRS WERE RELIEVED & BGN BRIEFING THEIR RELIEVING CTLRS. SOON THEREAFTER, THE FLT PASSED OVR THE ASR ANTENNA, THEN WAS DISPLAYED ON THE RADAR SCOPE IN A COAST MODE. IT REAPPEARED WITH A DATA TAG, THAT ERRONEOUSLY INDCD ANOTHER FACILITY HAD CTL OF THE FLT. THE RELIEVING CTLRS SAWTHE FULL DATA BLOCK ON THEIR SCOPES, BUT DISREGARDED IT, DUE TO THE ERRONEOUS CTL SYMBOL. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ACFT HIT MTNS AT THE LAST ASSIGNED ALT OF 3000'. THE CFI HAD JUST MOVED FM FL TO CA & WAS ON HIS 2ND DAY OF EMPLOYMENT IN CA.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.