Cessna 421C accident near Floriston, CA
On May 16, 2013, a Cessna 421C (airplane) was involved in an accident near Floriston, CA. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- May 16, 2013
- Place
- Floriston, CA
- Aircraft
- Cessna 421C · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 39.466°N, 120.048°W
- NTSB ID
- 20130516X73436
Official records · WPR13FA234
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- ATC Transcripts: Transcript (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn May 16, 2013, about 1330 Pacific daylight time (PDT), a Cessna 421C, N421W, impacted mountainous terrain near Floriston, California. Tri-Wings LLC, was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The private pilot was fatally injured; the airplane was destroyed by impact forces and a post-crash fire. The cross-country personal flight departed Reid-Hillview Airport (RHV), San Jose, California, at 1237 PDT with a planned destination of Reno, Nevada. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and an instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan had been filed. While descending into Reno, the pilot was in communication with air traffic controllers (ATC). After departing from 17,000 feet msl and cleared to 11,000 feet, the pilot appeared to veer off the assigned heading of 040 degrees. ATC attempted to verify the pilot's intentions when the pilot advised he was in a spin. There were no further communications with the pilot. A witness near the accident site heard an airplane, which he could not see due to the dark clouds in the area. He described what he heard as an airplane in a dive, and he could hear the engine noise increase and decrease multiple times. After the airplane noise stopped, he saw a column of black smoke in the area of the accident site. The accident site was located by US Forest Service personnel in the Toiyabe National Forest about 0.6 miles southwest of the Verdi Peak, at an elevation of 7,957 feet msl. PERSONNEL INFORMATIONA review of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airman records reveale
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain airplane control during descent while operating in instrument meteorological conditions.
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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.
