Cessna 172H N3940R

Summary

On 3 January 2007 at about 02:35 local time, a Cessna 172H registered N3940R was involved in an accident near Armstrong, Texas, United States. 3 people were on board and 3 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

3 January 2007 at 02:35

Classification

Accident

Location

Armstrong, Texas, United States

Coordinates

26.8742, -97.7292

Aircraft

Cessna 172H

Registration

N3940R

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Weslaco → Jacksonville

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

DFW07FA049

3 people died.

The pilot's continued flight into adverse weather conditions resulting in a loss of control. Contributing factors were the dark night conditions, the clouds. low ceilings, and the pilot's limited night and instrument experience.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

"THIS CASE WAS MODIFIED ON 1/31/2008." The non-instrument rated private pilot inadvertently entered clouds while attempting a night cross-country in marginal night visual meteorological conditions. While maneuvering to maintain visual flight rules, the pilot entered the clouds and consequently lost control of the airplane. The airplane impacted the ground in a right turn in a pronounced nose-low attitude. The area of the accident is sparsely populated and there were no reported eyewitnesses to the accident. A pilot flying in the vicinity of the accident pilot reported several cloud layers between 1,500 and 6,000 feet mean sea level. The airplane was configured with the flaps retracted. Examination of the wreckage did not reveal any anomalies or pre-impact defects. The pilot had no actual instrument time and was not prepared to enter instrument meteorological conditions. Toxicology testing detected ethanol and citalopram in tissue samples. The ethanol detected is most likely a result of post-mortem ethanol production. It could not be determined if the use of citalopram (a prescription antidepressant also used for certain anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder) or the undetermined condition for which it was prescribed were contributory to the accident, although the use of citalopram by pilots is considered disqualifying by the FAA.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.