Aviation Crash Map

De Havilland TIGER MOTH DH 82A N838KC

5 November 1998 · Petaluma, California, United States · No injuries

Summary

On 5 November 1998 at about 19:15 local time, a De Havilland TIGER MOTH DH 82A registered N838KC was involved in an accident near Petaluma, California, United States. 3 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

The record

Date
at 19:15
Classification
Accident
Location
Petaluma, California, United States
Nearest airport
Petaluma Muni (O69)
Coordinates
38.2304, -122.5592
Aircraft
De Havilland TIGER MOTH DH 82A
Registration
N838KC
Category
Airplane
Engines
1
Operator
Not recorded
Operating rule
Part 91: General Aviation
Purpose of flight
Personal
Phase of flight
Not recorded
Route
Sonoma → Unknown
Aircraft damage
Substantial
Weather
VMC
Light
Day
NTSB number
LAX99LA025

People

Nobody was injured.

On board Died Serious Minor Uninjured
3 0 0 0 3

Probable cause

Failure of the pilot in the Tiger Moth to see and avoid traffic. A contributing factor was the delayed reaction of the student pilot in the Cessna to initiate a turnoff of the taxiway once it became apparent that the other airplane did not see him.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot of the Dehavilland Tiger Moth, N838KC, had turned off the runway after landing and was taxiing to the refueling pit. The pilot did not see another airplane on the taxiway during the turn. The Cessna 152, N68459, had just finished refueling and radioed that he was entering the taxiway to taxi to the active runway. When the Cessna was on the taxiway the pilot saw the Tiger Moth on the taxiway. At first the pilot was not able to determine which direction the Tiger Moth was moving in and as soon as he was able to tell that the Tiger Moth was headed towards him, he radioed that he was on the taxiway. The Tiger Moth continued towards the Cessna performing 'S' turns down the center of the taxiway. The Cessna again radioed that he was on the taxiway, and then attempted to exit the taxiway when it became apparent that the Tiger Moth did not see him. The Cessna reported that during the turn, he saw the front seat passenger turn his head in the direction of the Cessna. The left wings of both airplanes collided during the turn to avoid each other. There were no mechanical anomalies noted with either airplane.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.

Aircraft involved

Aircraft Registration Operator Damage
De Havilland TIGER MOTH DH 82A TIGER MOTH N838KC - Substantial
Cessna 152 152 N68459 Aeroventure Clubs, Inc. Substantial

Other De Havilland TIGER accidents

Date Aircraft Location Operator Outcome Died
3 Jun 1999 De Havilland TIGER MOTH DH82A
N9393
Maize, Kansas, United States - Minor injuries -
5 May 2001 De Havilland TIGER MOTH DH 82A
N838KC
Sonoma, California, United States - Serious injuries -
2 Aug 1994 De Havilland TIGER MOTH DH-82A
N38KH
Interlochen, Michigan, United States Elmer E. Sandmire No injuries -
23 Jul 2011 De Havilland TIGER MOTH DH 82A
N8872
Rockland, Maine, United States Owls Head Transportation Museum No injuries -
3 May 1984 De Havilland TIGER MOTH DH 82A
N82DS
San Antonio, Texas, United States - Fatal 2
24 Jun 2012 De Havilland TIGER MOTH DH 82A
N523R
Fontana, California, United States - No injuries -

All 12 records for this type

Other accidents in this area

Date Aircraft Location Operator Outcome Died
1 Oct 1998 Cessna 152
N49770
Avalon, California, United States Orange County Flight Center Fatal 1
5 Oct 1998 Grumman TS-2A
N416DF
Banning, California, United States - Fatal 1
15 Aug 1998 North American NAVION
N8820H
Salinas, California, United States - Fatal 2
21 Aug 1998 Bell 206B
N223HA
Salinas, California, United States
no coordinates
- No injuries -
21 Aug 1998 Robinson R22B
N2335Q
Ramona, California, United States Civic Helicopters No injuries -
27 Aug 1998 Aerospatiale SA316B
N605RA
Porterville, California, United States U.s. Dept. of the Interior No injuries -

All 170,864 records in United States