Cessna 172N N739KJ

Summary

On 19 June 1995 at about 02:20 local time, a Cessna 172N registered N739KJ, operated by Century Air Term. Inc., was involved in an accident near Vidal Junction, 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

19 June 1995 at 02:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Vidal Junction, California, United States

Coordinates

34.1406, -114.5194

Aircraft

Cessna 172N

Registration

N739KJ

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Century Air Term. Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Lake Havasu → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX95FA217

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain an altitude adequate to avoid the mountainous/hilly terrain. Contributing to the accident was the glare from the setting sun.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

THE PILOT HAD RENTED THE AIRPLANE FOR AN EARLY EVENING FLIGHT IN THE AREA OF THE COLORADO RIVER AND MOHAVE DESERT. THE WRECKAGE WAS SUBSEQUENTLY FOUND IN THE MOHAVE DESERT, WHERE IT HAD IMPACTED MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN AT THE 2,100-FOOT LEVEL OF A 2,695-FOOT MOUNTAIN SURROUNDED BY RELATIVELY LEVEL TERRAIN. THE AIRPLANE WAS IN LEVEL CRUISE FLIGHT ON A MAGNETIC HEADING OF 280 DEGREES DURING IMPACT. THE SETTING SUN WAS AT 6.0 DEGREES ABOVE THE HORIZON ON A MAGNETIC BEARING OF 280.9 DEGREES.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.