Beechcraft F33A N9204Q

Summary

On 10 November 2005 at about 02:34 local time, a Beechcraft F33A registered N9204Q was involved in an accident near Geyserville, California, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

10 November 2005 at 02:34

Classification

Accident

Location

Geyserville, California, United States

Nearest airport

Sonoma County (STS)

Coordinates

38.7389, -122.8183

Aircraft

Beechcraft F33A

Registration

N9204Q

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Business

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Redding → Santa Rosa

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

LAX06FA031

1 person died.

the pilot's failure to maintain an adequate terrain clearance altitude profile during the descent that resulted in controlled flight into terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

After visually identifying his home base airport on a night VFR approach, the pilot initiated a descent and the airplane struck the top of a ridgeline at the 2,834-foot level. The pilot was en route home from a trip between two airports that he made often. He had been receiving VFR flight following services from ARTCC and had cancelled when he reported the airport in sight. Recorded radar data showed the airplane descending from its cruise altitude in a straight line toward the airport and the accident site. Investigators identified two marks along the ridgeline that were similar in dimension to the distance between the main landing gear on the airplane. The airframe and engine examinations revealed no preimpact anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Two drug substances were found in toxicological tests of the pilot's specimens, Diphenhydramine and Cetirizine. Diphenhydramine was found at a level that indicates usage within the past 8 hours of the accident flight. The Cetirizine that was found in the urine, but not the blood, and indicated that the pilot more than likely ingested the drug within the previous 48 hours, but not within the previous 12 hours of the accident. Diphenhydramine can result in drowsiness, and has measurable effects on performance of cognitive and motor tasks. Studies have shown that individuals' performance of tasks has been degraded even though they feel normal after ingesting the drug; however, in this case it is unclear the extent to which the pilot may have been sedated and/or impaired. Studies of individuals taking Cetirizine have not found any significant impairment from the medication.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.