Cessna T337C N2620S

Summary

On 23 April 2006 at about 18:18 local time, a Cessna T337C registered N2620S was involved in an accident near Wrightwood, California, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

23 April 2006 at 18:18

Classification

Accident

Location

Wrightwood, California, United States

Coordinates

34.3633, -117.6900

Aircraft

Cessna T337C

Registration

N2620S

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Lancaster → San Diego

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX06FA148

2 people died.

The pilot's improper decision to continue VFR flight into instrument meteorological weather conditions, which resulted in controlled flight into mountainous terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot departed under visual flight rules (VFR) for a planned cross country flight over mountainous terrain. During the climb to cruise phase, the pilot requested and received VFR radar flight following service. He also requested from the controller a cloud top report. The controller replied that he did not have a report for the geographic area. Radar data showed that the pilot continued climbing in a southerly direction toward rising mountainous terrain until reaching 10,200 feet msl. Then, over the next few minutes the airplane gradually descended and made a left, 270-degree turn. The pilot informed the controller that he had gotten himself "in the soup" and was trying "to get out of it." The controller advised the pilot that the minimum vectoring altitude for the area was 11,600 feet. No response was received from the pilot. The radar data showed that during this time the airplane descended and impacted a mountaintop near the 8,000-foot msl elevation. A skier, who was located less than 3/4-mile from the accident site at 7,000 feet msl, reported hearing the sound of an engine which abruptly stopped with a "thud" sound. The skier reported he was unable to see the sky because the clouds covered the mountaintop. An examination of the airframe and engine did not reveal evidence of any mechanical malfunction. The ground scars and wreckage signatures showed the airplane was in controlled flight when the ground collision occurred.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.