Cessna 172S N897TW

Summary

On 2 September 2004 at about 04:00 local time, a Cessna 172S registered N897TW, operated by Edward A. Warburton, was involved in an accident near Willits, California, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

2 September 2004 at 04:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Willits, California, United States

Nearest airport

Willits Municipal (O28)

Coordinates

39.4503, -123.3792

Aircraft

Cessna 172S

Registration

N897TW

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Edward A. Warburton

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Watsonville → Willits

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

LAX04CA309

1 person had minor injuries.

the pilot's inadvertent descent and controlled flight into obstacles while maneuvering to land. Contributing factors were the dark, nighttime condition, which impaired the pilot's visual perceptions, and the pilot's failure to obtain a pertinent Notice to Airman regarding inoperative runway lights.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

While maneuvering to locate the runway during a dark, nighttime flight, the airplane descended until colliding with trees. As the pilot approached his home base airport, he attempted to activate the pilot controlled runway lights. However, he was unsuccessful. Thereafter, the pilot performed a low altitude pass over what he believed was runway 16/34 to ascertain if a portion of the runway's lights were operating. During the maneuver, the pilot failed to detect that the airplane was not aligned with the runway. Also, the pilot failed to maintain adequate altitude to avoid colliding with trees 1/8-mile west of the airport. Neither prior to taking off, nor at any time during the accident flight, did the pilot become aware that a Notice to Airman had been issued indicating that the airport's runway lights were "out of service."

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.