Cessna 152 N6308Q

Summary

On 20 October 2023 at about 03:42 local time, a Cessna 152 registered N6308Q, operated by Hillsboro Aero Academy LLC, was involved in an accident near The Dalles, Oregon, United States. One person was on board and 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

20 October 2023 at 03:42

Classification

Accident

Location

The Dalles, Oregon, United States

Nearest airport

Columbia Gorge Rgnl/the Dalles (DLS)

Coordinates

45.5800, -121.1500

Aircraft

Cessna 152

Registration

N6308Q

Category

Airplane

Year built

1981

Engines

1

Operator

Hillsboro Aero Academy LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Redmond → The Dalles

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

WPR24LA021

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot’s encounter with severe turbulence at night which resulted in an extended downwind and collision with wires during the base turn.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that the airplane encountered “extreme” turbulence while on the approach to an intermediate stopover airport during a night cross-country flight. The pilot extended the downwind leg of the traffic pattern to stabilize the airplane, and during the base leg turn, the airplane struck a wire and subsequently impacted terrain. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings and fuselage. The airport is located at an elevation of 246 ft mean sea level (msl) in a major river gorge. The northern ridge line above the airport is about 2,900 ft msl, and the southern ridge line is about 1,300 ft msl. The accident location is located about 2 miles south of the airport at an estimated evaluation of about 650 ft msl. High tension powerlines are positioned south of the airport along the southern ridge. According to the United States Navy Observatory, the official sunset was at 17:12 Pacific daylight time (PDT), the official end of civil twilight was at 17:42 PDT and the official moon set was at 20:02 PDT. The night cross-county training flight was part of the pilot’s training curriculum for her commercial, airplane single engine land certificate. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.