Cessna 172M N61587

Summary

On 6 January 1989 at about 01:05 local time, a Cessna 172M registered N61587 was involved in an accident near Oxnard, California, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

6 January 1989 at 01:05

Classification

Accident

Location

Oxnard, California, United States

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Cessna 172M

Registration

N61587

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Watsonville → Santa Monica

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

LAX89FA091

1 person died.

CONTINUED VFR FLIGHT BY THE PILOT INTO INSTRUMENT METEORLOGICAL CONDITIONS WHICH RESULTED IN AN IN-FLIGHT COLLSION WITH TERRAIN. RELATED FACTORS WERE: FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO USE A PREFLIGHT BRIEFING SERVICE, HIS DECISION TO INITIATE FLIGHT INTO KNOWN ADVERSE WEATHER, THE ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS, THE PILOT'S VISUAL PERCEPTION AT DUSK, AND THE RISING/MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

THE PLT LISTENED TO WX RPRTS ON THE RADIO, BUT DIDN'T RCV AN FAA OR NWS BRIEFING. A FRONTAL SYS WAS FORECASTED TO ACROSSHIS RTE OF FLT WITH PRCTNS FOR MULTIPLE CLOUD LAYERS, LOW CEILINGS, RESTRICTED VIS, ICING & RAIN SHOWERS. THE PLT TOLD A FRIEND, WHO DROVE HIM TO THE ARPT, THAT HE COULD 'FLY UNDER THE HEAVY CLOUDS' THAT THEY OBSERVED TO THE SOUTH. THE ACFT DEPD WATSONVILLE AT ABT 1450 PST, BUT DIDN'T ARRIVE AT THE DESTN (SANTA MONICA); 15 DAYS LTR, IT WAS FND ON ANACOPAISLAND (14 MI WEST OF OXNARD), WHERE IT IMPACTED A 1112' RIDGE AT ABT THE 440' LVL. RADAR DATA SHOWED A PROBABLE TRACK LEADING TWD THE ACDNT SITE, BUT IT HAD DISAPPEARED ABT 22 MI NW OF THE CRASH SITE, AFTER THE ACFT HAD FLOWN WEST OF A MORE DIRECT RTE (OVER OCEAN WATER). A HELICOPTER PLT, WHO WAS IN THE VCTNY AT THE TIME, RPRTD A 500' BROKEN TO OVERCAST SKY COND WITH LESS THAN 2 MI VIS & MOD RAIN SHOWERS. THE ACDNT WAS ESTIMATED TO HAVE OCCURRED AT ABT DUSK. NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE/MALFUNCTION OF THE ACFT OR ENG WAS FND.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.