Cessna 182P accident near La Mirada, CA
On December 19, 2004, a Cessna 182P (airplane) was involved in an accident near La Mirada, CA. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- December 19, 2004
- Place
- La Mirada, CA
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182P · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 33.888°N, 118.024°W
- NTSB ID
- 20041227X02035
NTSB summary
On December 19, 2004, about 0948 Pacific standard time, a Cessna 182P, N9187G, collided with a radio transmission tower at La Mirada, California, while in the traffic pattern to the Fullerton Municipal Airport, Fullerton, California. Lightning Aircraft Corporation was operating the rental airplane under the provisions 14 CFR 91. The private pilot and one passenger sustained fatal injuries; the airplane sustained substantial damage. The local personal flight departed from the El Monte Airport, El Monte, California, about 0915, with a planned destination of Fullerton, where the pilot would pickup two passengers. After loading the passengers, the flight was to continue onto Catalina where they intended to spend the day before returning to Fullerton, and then onto El Monte. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a flight plan had not been filed. During an interview with a National Transportation Safety Board investigator, a witness stated that while driving his automobile southbound on Interstate 5, he observed an airplane flying low, in a westerly direction. He noted that the airplane was configured in a wings-level attitude and that the propeller appeared to be turning. The airplane continued towards two parallel towers, both of which had numerous guy wires attached. He observed the inboard section of the airplane's left wing collide with the taller tower, impacting about 10 feet below the pinnacle. After the initial impact, a fire erupted and both wings and the tail floated toward the ground. Another witness stated that he too was driving southbound on the Interstat
Probable cause
the pilot's inadequate visual lookout and failure to maintain altitude/clearance from a transmission tower while on an extended base leg of the traffic pattern. A factor in the accident was the sun glare condition.
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Browse: California · 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.
