Loss of Control in Flight · NTSB WPR19FA209
Cessna 182 — Wolf Point, MT
| Date | August 5, 2019 |
| Location | Wolf Point, MT |
| Aircraft | Cessna 182 |
| Purpose of flight | Business |
| Conditions | Day · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Approach-VFR pattern base Loss of control in flight |
| Pilot age | 50 |
| Pilot total time | 270 hrs · Low time |
| Time in type | Unknown |
| Fatalities | 2 |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Angle of attack-Not attained/maintained
- Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot
What happened
The pilot and passenger planned to visit a farm by landing on an adjacent dirt road. The pilot had previously been to the farm but had never flown there. The owner of the farm watched as the pilot crossed over the road and made a left turn to parallel the road. The airplane then began another left turn, consistent with a left base-to-final turn, during which the airplane continued past the road before it entered a sharp turn and descended into terrain. Upon impact, the airplane burst into flames.
A postaccident examination revealed no anomalies that that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane. The circumstances of the accident are consistent with the pilot exceeding the airplane’s critical angle of attack while maneuvering for landing on the road, resulting in an accelerated stall, loss of control, and impact with terrain.