Primary finding
Probable cause
the decision of the pilot to perform a low-level steep turn which resulted in an inadvertent loss of control and subsequent stall/spin. Factors were high density altitude and inadequate altitude for recovery.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The airplane entered a steep turn at a low altitude in preparation for an off-airport landing. The pilot inadvertently stalled the airplane with insufficient altitude for recovery. The elevation of the landing area was about 5,500 feet msl.
Source record
Factual narrative
On July 19, 1996, at 1134 hours Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 172, N1958D, collided with terrain after an in-flight loss of control near Midas, Nevada. The airplane was destroyed by postimpact fire. The pilot received fatal injuries. The airplane was being operated as a personal flight when the accident occurred. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time. The accident airplane was one of two flying from McCall, Idaho, to Perris, California, with undetermined en route stops. The other airplane was being flown by the accident pilot's father. The father's airplane was experiencing engine problems and the father made an off-airport precautionary landing in an open field. The father stated that he got out of the airplane with the engine problem and expected his son to land. He observed his son's airplane in a steep turn at a low altitude. He reported that his son appeared to lose control and descend until impacting the ground. The elevation of the accident area was about 5,500 feet mean sea level (msl). The density altitude was estimated to be in excess of 7,000 feet msl at the time of the accident. -