Cessna 175 N175JG

Summary

On 29 October 2008 at about 21:45 local time, a Cessna 175 registered N175JG was involved in an accident near Mt. Dora, New Mexico, 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

29 October 2008 at 21:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Mt. Dora, New Mexico, United States

Nearest airport

Clayton Municipal Airpark (CAO)

Coordinates

36.5436, -103.4592

Aircraft

Cessna 175

Registration

N175JG

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Clayton → Clayton

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN09FA043

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from rising terrain for undetermined reasons.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The private pilot with over 5,000 hours of total flight time departed his home airfield under visual-flight-rules conditions. Shortly after departure, the aircraft struck the side of a nearby mountain. There were no indications of loss of control or of any preimpact anomalies with the airframe or engine. The pilot had a long history of rheumatoid arthritis and back pain, and was on multiple medications, including two different narcotic painkillers. He had reported to the FAA a history of arthritis and the use of medication typically prescribed for rheumatoid arthritis, and the FAA had not requested any further information. The pilot had experienced increased pain within a month of the accident, and post-accident toxicology testing indicated the presence of a third narcotic painkiller and a short-acting local anesthetic in his system at the time of the accident, suggesting the possibility of additional treatment for his pain within a few days of the accident. Toxicology testing was also consistent with the ingestion of at least 10 tablets of a prescription narcotic painkiller within the 2 hours prior to the accident. The circumstances of the accident, in which this experienced pilot flew directly into clearly visible elevated terrain with no discovered anomalies with the airplane, could suggest an unknown cockpit distraction, impairment, or an intentional act; however, the investigation could not conclusively determine the specific cause of the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.