Cessna 182J N3056F

Summary

On 9 September 2001 at about 16:15 local time, a Cessna 182J registered N3056F, operated by Billy Joe C. Pyatt, was involved in an accident near Gold Beach, Oregon, United States. 2 people were on board and one died, one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

9 September 2001 at 16:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Gold Beach, Oregon, United States

Nearest airport

Half Moon Bar Lodge

Coordinates

42.6972, -123.9444

Aircraft

Cessna 182J

Registration

N3056F

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Billy Joe C. Pyatt

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Fort Jones → Gold Beach

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA01LA170

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to attain proper alignment while on final approach and clearance from trees. The pilot's lack of total experience in this type of mountain flying operation was a factor.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he had never been into this airstrip before that was listed as a difficult approach, required advanced mountain skills and that instruction from an experienced mountain flying instructor should be obtained before landing there. The approach is through a narrow mountain canyon, following a river and circling a conical peak. The threshold to the airstrip is seen by the pilot about 1500 feet away. If the approach is stable, the pilot then makes a right turn through an approximate 100-foot wide opening in the trees. The pilot reported that when he made the right turn to final approach, the left wing was on the tree line and it was "really tight." The pilot increased the right banking turn, which put the aircraft on a collision course with the trees on the right side. The pilot banked to the left but the aircraft felt "sluggish. The pilot added power and raised the nose of the aircraft to try and go-around, however, the stall horn sounded and the pilot knew that he was not going to avoid a collision with the trees. The pilot then lowered the nose of the airplane, reduced power and leveled the wings. The aircraft then collided with the trees and subsequently the ground. The pilot reported that he had some mountain flying experience and that his passenger, a private pilot, had been into this airstrip the week before. The pilot reported no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the aircraft at the time of the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.