Cessna 172 N6922A

Summary

On 31 January 2011 at about 23:25 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N6922A, operated by Gene A. Yu, was involved in an accident near Glendora, California, United States. 2 people were on board and one was seriously injured, 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

31 January 2011 at 23:25

Classification

Accident

Location

Glendora, California, United States

Coordinates

34.1608, -117.8792

Aircraft

Cessna 172

Registration

N6922A

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Gene A. Yu

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

La Verne → La Verne

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR11FA117

1 person was seriously injured.

The flight crew's failure to maintain adequate terrain clearance while maneuvering in downdraft conditions over mountains.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight instructor reported that he and the commercially certificated student flew to mountainous terrain to practice using orographic lift. The flight instructor stated that the lift they were flying in began to dissipate so he took the flight controls and added full power to depart the area. Suddenly, they encountered a strong downdraft and moments later they impacted the terrain. It is likely that the airplane was not at a sufficient altitude for the pilot to recover from the downdraft encounter and clear the terrain. The flight instructor told local authorities at the time of his rescue that there were no problems with the airplane. A postaccident examination revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical anomalies with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.