Cessna 172M N4396R

Summary

On 28 June 2009 at about 22:10 local time, a Cessna 172M registered N4396R was involved in an accident near Rimrock, Washington, United States. 3 people were on board and 2 died, one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

28 June 2009 at 22:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Rimrock, Washington, United States

Nearest airport

Tieton State Airport (4S6)

Coordinates

46.6433, -121.1122

Aircraft

Cessna 172M

Registration

N4396R

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Yakima → Rimrock

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR09FA316

2 people died.

The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from trees during a go-around. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's lack of flight experience, and his delayed initiation of a go-around.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot attempted to perform a landing at the back country turf airstrip. He had not landed at this airstrip before and witnesses reported gusty tail wind conditions existed as the pilot attempted the landing. The runway was surrounded by trees, and rapidly rising mountainous terrain existed at the departure end of the accident runway. The terrain is such that under most circumstances, landings are made in the direction of this runway irrespective of wind conditions. Witnesses observed the airplane approach the runway high and fast. The airplane did not touch down at the normal touchdown point, but rather continued at tree top level before the pilot added power about 3/4 of the way along the runway. The airplane then struck trees at the end of the runway in a nose high attitude. Post accident examination of the engine and airframe did not reveal any malfunctions or failures that would have prevented normal flight. The pilot had relatively low total flight experience, which included 2 hours of total flight time in the preceding 90 days, with his last flight occurring 2 months prior to the accident. Additionally, he had no experience landing at turf airstrips, or airports located within mountainous terrain.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.