Cessna 414 accident near Modesto, CA

On January 18, 2023, a Cessna 414 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Modesto, CA. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.

Date

January 18, 2023

Place

Modesto, CA

Aircraft

Cessna 414 · Airplane

Injuries

1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor

Damage

Substantial

Position

37.618°N, 120.938°W

NTSB ID

20230118106599

Official records · WPR23FA092

• 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 January 18, 2023, at 1307 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 414 airplane, N4765G, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Modesto, California. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The airplane departed runway 10L at Modesto City-County Airport-Harry Sham Field (MOD), Modesto, California, at 1259. According to the Modesto tower controller, the pilot’s planned destination was Buchanan Field Airport (CCR), Concord, California. ADS-B flight data showed that the airplane climbed to 3,200 ft PA as it made a right turn and departed to the northwest, reaching about 150 kts. At 1301, the Modesto local tower controller instructed the pilot to switch radio frequencies to Northern California Terminal Radar Approach Control. The pilot responded that he was switching frequencies, but his subsequent radio transmission was on the MOD frequency. The pilot made several more radio transmissions that indicated he was attempting to change radio frequencies, but that his radio was not changing frequencies. The tower controller asked the pilot if he wanted to return to MOD, and the pilot responded that he did. The pilot was then instructed to make a left 180° turn and enter a left downwind pattern to runway 28 right (28R). The flight track data showed that about 1302 the airplane made a left turn back to the southeast and paralleled the runway about 3 miles west of MOD before descending and flying a non-standard traffic pattern for runway 28R. At 1304, the pilot queried the towe

Probable cause

The pilot’s exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack and failure to maintain proper airspeed during a turn to final, resulting in an aerodynamic stall and subsequent impact with terrain. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s distraction due to a non-critical radio anomaly.

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Browse: California · Cessna aircraft

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