Primary finding
Probable cause
The pilot's poor preflight planning/preparation and intentional flight into instrument meteorological conditions. Factors relating to this accident were the downdraft, low ceiling, rain, obscuration, and the mountainous terrain
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The noninstrument rated pilot departed toward an area of known instrument meteorological conditions with the mountain tops obscured by clouds and rain. When the airplane approached the mountainous area the pilot executed a 180 degree turn. The right wing collided with the terrain during the turn. The pilot reported that the airplane did not experience any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures
Source record
Factual narrative
On June 5, 1993, at about 1400 hours Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 172, N6185E, collided with the terrain near Montgomery Pass, Nevada. The pilot was conducting a visual flight rules personal flight to Paso Robles, California, with a planned refueling stop at Bishop, California. The airplane, registered to and operated by the pilot, was destroyed. The certificated private pilot sustained serious injuries; his passenger sustained minor injuries. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the accident site. The flight originated at Rawlins, Wyoming, on June 4, 1993, and landed at Ely, Nevada; the flight departed Ely, Nevada, on June 5, 1993, at 0930 hours and landed at Tonopah Airport, Tonopah, Nevada, for fuel; the flight departed Tonopah Airport at about 1330 hours. Ground witnesses reported that after departing Tonopah Airport, the pilot "flew down main street at a very low altitude." Other witnesses reported that low clouds obscured the mountain peaks near the accident site. The pilot reported in a written statement to the Mineral County Sheriff's Department, Tonopah, Nevada, that light rain existed at Tonopah, Nevada, when he departed, but that the ceiling was between 2,000 to 3,000 feet above the ground. The aircraft encountered a severe downdraft when it approached Montgomery Pass. The pilot executed a right 180 degree turn, but the right wing struck the rising terrain during the turn. The pilot stated in the Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1/2, that while flying at 2,500 feet above the ground the flight encountered a "...severe downdraft, sinker, wind shear..." with no time to return. Realizing that a ground impact was imminent, the pilot elected to land in an open area. The pilot indicated in the accident report that the airplane did not experience any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures. -