Cessna 421C accident near Monterey, CA

On July 13, 2021, a Cessna 421C (airplane) was involved in an accident near Monterey, CA. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.

Date

July 13, 2021

Place

Monterey, CA

Aircraft

Cessna 421C · Airplane

Injuries

2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor

Damage

Destroyed

Position

36.575°N, 121.825°W

NTSB ID

20210713103470

Official records · WPR21FA270

• Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation

Air traffic control records

• ATC Specialist's Factual Report: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
• ATC Specialist's Factual Report - Attachment 1 - Ads-B Data: Document (CSV), on ntsb.gov
• ATC Specialist's Factual Report - Attachment 2 - Opsvue Track Data: Document (CSV), on ntsb.gov
• ATC Specialist's Factual Report - Attachment 3 - ATC Audio Transcript-Partial: Transcript (PDF), on ntsb.gov

NTSB summary

HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn July 13, 2021, about 1042 Pacific daylight time (PDT), a Cessna 421C, N678SW, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Monterey, California. The pilot and passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. Review of recorded communications from the Monterey air traffic control tower revealed that before takeoff the pilot canceled their instrument flight rules (IFR) clearance and requested a visual flight rules (VFR) on top clearance. The controller subsequently cleared the airplane to the Salinas VOR via the Monterey Five departure and to proceed VFR-ON-TOP. The controller issued a clearance for takeoff and shortly after, instructed the pilot to contact the Oakland Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC). Review of recorded communications from the Oakland ARTCC revealed that the pilot established radio communication with the Oakland ARTCC controller as the airplane ascended through 1,700 ft mean sea level (msl). The controller observed on the radar display the airplane was turning in the wrong direction and issued an immediate right turn to a heading of 030° which was acknowledged by the pilot. The controller then immediately issued two low altitude alerts with no response from the pilot. No further radio communication from the pilot was received. Recorded automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) data provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) showed that the airplane departed from runway 10R at 1738:44 and ascended to 1,075 ft msl before a right

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to maintain airplane control due to spatial disorientation during an instrument departure procedure in instrument meteorological conditions which resulted in a collision with terrain. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s lack of recent instrument flying experience.

More accidents in CA

• Douglas MD-83, Feb 1, 2000
• Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9-32, Aug 31, 1986
• British Aerospace BAE-146-200, Dec 8, 1987
• Beech C-99, Aug 24, 1984
• Sikorsky S-61N, Aug 6, 2008

Browse: California · Cessna aircraft

See it on the map

Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.