Cirrus SR-22 N7GA

Summary

On 27 November 2019 at about 01:30 local time, a Cirrus SR-22 registered N7GA was involved in an accident near North Las Vegas, Nevada, 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

27 November 2019 at 01:30

Classification

Accident

Location

North Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Nearest airport

North Las Vegas (VGT)

Coordinates

36.4000, -115.1808

Aircraft

Cirrus SR-22

Registration

N7GA

Category

Airplane

Year built

2001

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Lake Havasu → North Las Vegas

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

WPR20FA034

3 people died.

The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from terrain during cruise flight in dark night conditions.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was conducting a visual flight rules (VFR) personal flight with two passengers during dark night conditions. Prior to the flight, the pilot had filed and subsequently activated a VFR flight plan from his point of departure to his intended destination. As the pilot neared his intended destination, he contacted Nellis Air Traffic Control Facility and reported his altitude of 6,500 ft and that he had the weather at his destination airport. He also requested a practice instrument landing system (ILS) approach. The controller acknowledged the request and advised the pilot to expect the ILS approach. Throughout the following 7 minutes, the controller issued various heading changes to the pilot due to departing traffic at a nearby Air Force base, which the pilot acknowledged. The controller then issued the pilot a left turn to a westerly heading and informed the pilot that altitude was his discretion, which the pilot acknowledged. About 1 minute, 54 seconds later, the pilot transmitted “we’re getting a low altitude alert for N7GA, we gotta turn left.” Shortly after, the controller instructed the pilot to “turn left heading 250°,” which the pilot acknowledged. No further communications from the pilot were received despite multiple attempts from the controller. Throughout this timeframe, recorded radar data showed the airplane at an altitude of 6,500 ft msl. The airplane impacted mountainous terrain at an elevation of 6,500 ft msl, about 400 ft below the peak. The wreckage was fragmented and mostly consumed by fire. Examination revealed no anomalies with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. Based on the available evidence, it is likely that the pilot had some sort of terrain awareness warning available; however, it was undetermined what type of system it was. While the pilot reported that he received a “low altitude alert” from an unknown source about 22 seconds before the last radar target, it’s likely that the pilot did not have sufficient time to maneuver to avoid terrain.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.