Cessna 172 N55231
2 August 2020 · San Jose, California, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 2 August 2020 at about 17:17 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N55231 was involved in an accident near San Jose, California, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 17:17
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- San Jose, California, United States
- Nearest airport
- Reid Hillview (KRHV)
- Coordinates
- 37.3378, -121.8003
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172
- Registration
- N55231
- Category
- Airplane
- Year built
- 2014
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Carson City → San Jose
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- WPR20LA256
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Probable cause
The airplane’s collision with a bird while maneuvering in the airport traffic pattern.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The pilot stated that while in the downwind leg of a traffic pattern, the right wing of the airplane impacted an object. Subsequently, the airplane yawed to the right and lost altitude. The pilot notified the tower and immediately executed a precautionary landing. Postaccident examination of the airplane found damage to the right wing’s leading edge, just outboard of the side strut. The leading edge was crushed aft revealing internal surfaces of the wing structure. Feather fragments were later found on the internal surfaces. A large deceased golden eagle and a small hobby drone were found below the downwind leg traffic area during a search. The hobby drone was mostly undamaged and had signatures indicating that it had been in the area for an extended period of time and was not likely impacted by an airplane. Lab results confirmed the airplane impacted a golden eagle.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Cessna 172 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 Sep 2020 | Cessna 172 | Higginsville, Missouri, United States | University of Central Missouri | No injuries | - |
| 6 Feb 2020 | Cessna 172 | Palmer, Alaska, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 2 May 2020 | Cessna 172 | Fresno, California, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 2 Aug 2020 | Cessna 172 | Conway, Arkansas, United States | Barrett Aviation | No injuries | - |
| 3 Oct 2020 | Cessna 172 | Hinckley, Minnesota, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 31 Dec 2020 | Cessna 172R | Hope, Alaska, United States | Elmendorf Air Force Base Aero Club | Minor injuries | - |
All 12,209 records for this type
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 Feb 2020 | Cessna 208 | Eureka, California, United States | Redding Aero Enterprises Inc | Minor injuries | - |
| 19 Aug 2020 | Arrow-Falcon Exporters UH-1H | Coalinga, California, United States | Guardian Helicopters Inc | Fatal | 1 |
| 4 Oct 2020 | Evolution REVO | Hawthorne, California, United States | Joe K Audette | Fatal | 1 |
| 10 Feb 2020 | Beechcraft 36 | Avalon, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 3 Feb 2020 | Boeing 747 412 | Los Angeles, California, United States | Kalitta Air | No injuries | - |
| 3 Jun 2020 | Beechcraft D 45 | Ione, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |