Piper PA-28-180 accident near Hopland, CA
On December 25, 2005, a Piper PA-28-180 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Hopland, CA. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- December 25, 2005
- Place
- Hopland, CA
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-180 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 38.912°N, 123.063°W
- NTSB ID
- 20060120X00104
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On December 24, 2005, at 2300 Pacific standard time, a Piper PA-28-180, N3953R, impacted terrain while in cruise flight near Hopland, California. The airplane was registered to and operated by Empire Aero Club of Sebastopol, California, under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91 as a personal flight. The non-instrument rated private pilot, who was the sole occupant, was fatally injured, and the airplane was destroyed. Dark night marginal visual meteorological conditions to instrument meteorological conditions prevailed in the vicinity of the accident at the time of the accident. A flight plan was not filed for the cross-country flight, which is presumed to have originated from the Ukiah Airport, Ukiah, California, at an unknown time. The pilot reserved the airplane from Empire Aero Club between 1500 and 2200 on December 24. According to one of the club members, the pilot was seen taxiing the airplane at Santa Rosa Airport, California, around 1500, what was described as marginal visual flight rule (VFR) conditions with limited visibility. Although the pilot's flight plan could not be confirmed, the club member believed that the pilot flew the airplane from Santa Rosa to Ukiah, and was returning when the accident occurred. The fueling credit card utilized by the Empire Aero Club did not have a charge on it for the day of the accident. A witness reported that she and her husband were driving south on Highway 101 toward Cloverdale, California, on their way to a family member's residence on the evening of December 24, 2005. She was in the passenger seat of her car
Probable cause
The non-instrument rated pilot's failure to maintain clearance with terrain, which resulted in a controlled flight into terrain. Contributing factors were the dark night conditions and the low clouds.
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Browse: California · Piper 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.
