|
Located on southwest face of Wright Mountain. Two people died in this accident that occurred February 15, 1993 when a Cessna T210M (Reg. # N761NE) crashed into Wright Mountain. The pilot and his passenger departed the southern California area for an evening flight to the central part of the state. He contacted approach control for entry into the Los Angeles TCA and through the VFR corridor over LAX. The pilot then climbed over mountainous terrain to 10,500 feet, and intercepted the V107 airway. After passing the mountainous terrain the pilot descended to 4,500 feet, on V107. According to the Jeppesen Low Altitude Enroute Charts three and four, the minimum enroute altitude for that segment of the airway is 7,000 feet. According to the San Francisco Sectional Aeronautical Chart the maximum elevation figure, for the accident area is 5,600 feet. The airplane impacted 4,500 foot Wright Mountain about 80 feet below a ridge line in level flight. According to the radar data the airplane ground speed was about 160 knots when radar contact was lost about two and one half miles west of V107. Weather conditions were good, however, the night was dark. The pilot was flying with an invalid medical certificate and he was simply too low. The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause of this accident as the pilots inadequate preflight planning and his failure to select a safe cruise altitude that would ensure adequate terrain clearance during the night cross country.
|
|
| Copyright ©, 2005 Three Rocks Research. Updated October 2005 |