Cessna 172H accident near Angel Fire, NM
On June 26, 2000, a Cessna 172H (airplane) was involved in an accident near Angel Fire, NM. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- June 26, 2000
- Place
- Angel Fire, NM
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172H · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 1 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 36.390°N, 105.269°W
- NTSB ID
- 20001212X21201
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On June 25, 2000, approximately 1900 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 172H, N2526L, was destroyed when it collided with trees during initial climb, then impacted terrain and burned at Angel Fire, New Mexico. The private pilot and one passenger were fatally injured. The other passenger escaped with minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed for the personal flight being conducted under Title 14 CFR Part 91. The flight originated at Angel Fire Airport approximately 1855. According to the Las Vegas, New Mexico, Municipal Airport manager, N2526L arrived there on the evening of June 24. The pilot told him they were unable to fly to Angel Fire because it was night and he was unfamiliar with the mountainous terrain. They were given permission to sleep in a U.S. Forest Service trailer parked nearby. The airport manager said he heard the airplane take off as he was coming to work the next morning approximately 0615. According to a written statement submitted by a Ross Aviation line serviceman, he arrived for work at the Angel Fire Airport approximately 0700 and found N2526L parked on the ramp. He said the airplane must have arrived early that morning "because there was no dew on it," and it had not been there the night before when he closed approximately 1800. He chocked the airplane and tied it down. Approximately 1730, "three college age adults. . .with backpacks" arrived and the pilot requested that the airplane be "topped off." The lineman suggested that he depart with a light fuel load "since temperatures were
Probable cause
The pilot's improper inflight decision to prematurely attempt a climb towards rising terrain before sufficient altitude had been attained that would assure adequate obstacle clearance. Factors were high density altitude and trees.
More accidents in NM
- Gates Learjet 25D, Sep 5, 1993
- Piper PA-32-300, Dec 26, 1982
- Mitsubishi MU-2B-30, Jun 25, 1992
- Cessna 421C, Feb 11, 1985
- Beech 58, Mar 26, 1982
Browse: New Mexico · Cessna aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
