Cessna 172N N726RJ

Summary

On 6 March 2009 at about 21:53 local time, a Cessna 172N registered N726RJ, operated by Golden Wings Flying Club, was involved in an accident near Oceanside, 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

6 March 2009 at 21:53

Classification

Accident

Location

Oceanside, California, United States

Coordinates

33.0281, -117.8544

Aircraft

Cessna 172N

Registration

N726RJ

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Golden Wings Flying Club

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

San Diego → San Diego

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR09LA149

1 person died.

A loss of aircraft control for undetermined reasons.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During a local flight, radar data identified for the accident airplane indicated that approximately 1 hour into the flight, the airplane climbed above 12,500 feet. About 15 minutes later it climbed above 14,000 feet, and stayed above 14,000 for 42 minutes. At this point, the target was descending, and began turning to the right (west). It lost 13,000 feet in the last minute. Boaters reported seeing the airplane going nose low into the ocean. They maneuvered their boats to the site, and observed debris and an oil slick. The Coast Guard recovered several pieces of debris including a seat, which fell within the serial number range of the accident airplane. The remainder of the wreckage and the pilot were not recovered.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.