N8718X

HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn October 15, 2016, at 1552 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 182D airplane, N8718X, impacted the northeast face of Red Peak in the Desolation Wilderness near South Lake Tahoe, California. The private pilot sustained fatal injuries, and the airplane was destroyed. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed in the area of the accident site, and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight, which departed Winnemucca Municipal Airport (WMC), Winnemucca, Nevada, about 1320, with a planned destination of Westover Field/Amador County Airport (JAQ), Jackson, California.

The pilot was returning from a hunting trip, and initially departed Lemhi County Airport (SMN), Salmon, Idaho, on the morning of the accident. He landed at WMC, where he serviced the airplane with 41 gallons of 100LL aviation gasoline. Before departing, he spoke with his wife and stated that the landing at WMC was challenging due to gusting wind conditions.

After departing on the accident flight, the pilot took two digital photographs, which he sent to his wife as text messages. The photographs were taken at 1329 and 1336, and their GPS-derived positions and altitudes were contained within the metadata. The photographs were taken about 9 and 18 miles southwest of WMC at altitudes of 6,755 ft and 8,986 ft, respectively, and included views to the south-southeast. (See figures 1 and 2.) The photographs captured areas of mountainous terrain with peaks that appeared about level with the airplane's altitude. Dust clouds could be seen in an adjacent valley, with the dust reaching elevations above the airplane. To the south, in the general direction of the flight, the area was enveloped with dust and/or virga. Both photographs included overcast cloud layers, with openings to the south, through which multiple layers of lenticular clouds could be seen.

Figures 1. 2. Photographs Taken by the Pilot at 1329 (left) and 1336 (right).

At 1338, Air Route Surveillance Radar based in Fallon, Nevada, acquired a target which was using a transponder code of 1200 and traveling southwest at a mode C reported altitude of 9,500 ft, which corresponded with the airplane's position and route. During the next 13 minutes, after passing 6 miles north of the 9,836 ft summit of Star Peak, the target made a 360° left turn descending to 7,600 ft and then climbing back to 8,600 ft.

The target then proceeded southwest for the next hour at altitudes ranging between 8,700 ft and 11,200 ft; at 1450, the pilot's wife received a text message from the pilot stating that he was at Pyramid Lake, and "79 knots."

The target reached the northeast outskirts of Reno, Nevada, at 1454; about that time, the pilot initiated radio contact with Oakland Air Route Traffic Control Center (ZOA), and requested visual flight rules (VFR) flight following. He was provided a transponder code of 3726, and a few seconds later, the 1200 code target switched to a code of 3726. The airplane continued on the southwesterly track, and at 1457, the ZOA controller provided the pilot with a new frequency, transferring the airplane to Northern California Terminal Radar Approach Control (NCT). After establishing radio contact with NCT, the pilot reported his altitude (10,600 ft) and destination and was provided an altimeter setting.

About 2 minutes later, the pilot of an Air Tractor AT-802 (callsign Tanker 874) reported over the same frequency that he was over Pyramid Lake (about 14 miles north of the accident airplane's location) at 8,200 ft and was inbound for "Reno" airport. The pilot of an Aero Commander 690A airplane then reported to NCT that he was also over Pyramid Lake, was inbound for Reno/Stead Airport, and was looking for Tanker 874. Over the next few minutes, the NCT controller issued a wind advisory to Tanker 874 for Reno International Airport, reporting wind from 200° at 31 knots, gusting to 41 knots. The pilot of Tanker 874 stated that his intention was to land at Reno/Stead Airport, rather than Reno-Tahoe International Airport, but that the wind was "not good". He stated that he would track the progress of the Aero Commander, and then divert to Reno International if the wind conditions were not favorable.

During those communications, the accident airplane progressed at an altitude of about 10,700 ft while remaining on a track of 220° and a ground speed of about 60 knots. At 1507, the accident pilot asked the NCT controller if a temporary flight restriction (TFR) over Carson City, Nevada, was still in effect. The controller responded that it was, but that it should not be a factor because the TFR ceiling was 10,000 ft. (See figure 3.)

Figure 3. Temporary Flight Restriction (green) Underneath the Route of Flight

By 1522, the accident airplane was 12 miles south of Reno, and the NCT controller initiated a handoff back to ZOA and provided the pilot with the appropriate frequency. The pilot read back the frequency correctly; however, the pilot did not contact ZOA.

The airplane continued on the same general southwesterly track; over the next 29 minutes, the ZOA controller made four attempts to contact the pilot and requested that NCT do the same. No response was received by either facility, and radar contact was lost at 1551.

Review of the radar data indicated that, at 1543, as the airplane crossed the western shore of Lake Tahoe (elevation 6,229 ft) within about 8 miles of the peaks of the Desolation Wilderness area (elevation 9,983 ft), it began to veer left and then right with accompanying oscillations in altitude between 10,100 ft and 10,900 ft. For the last 96 seconds, the airplane descended from 10,800 ft to the last recorded altitude of 9,700 ft, about 3/4-mile northeast of the 9,311-ft summit of Red Peak. (See figure 4.)

Figure 4. Flight Path During the Final Stages of Flight (the white lines are direct connections between each acquired radar target and do not represent the airplane's actual flight path between targets)

Controllers from both facilities continued their attempts to establish contact with the pilot, and with no response, an alert notice (ALNOT) was issued at 1839.

Review of the radar data for the last 2 hours of flight indicated that the airplane traveled a straight-line distance about 135 miles, which yielded a ground speed that was about half the airplane's normal cruise speed. (See figure 5.)

Figure 5. Radar-acquired Route of Flight (blue indicates 1200 transponder code, red indicates 3726 transponder code)

Snow, rain, and strong wind conditions hampered the search effort, and the wreckage was discovered 3 days later, covered in snow at an elevation of 8,630 ft, about 3,300 ft south of the last radar target and about 50 miles from the destination airport, JAQ. PERSONNEL INFORMATIONThe pilot held a private pilot certificate with an airplane single-engine land rating, issued in 1988. He held a third-class Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) medical certificate issued on February 16, 2015, with no limitations or waivers. He did not hold an instrument rating.

Review of the pilot's logbook revealed a total flight experience of 1,151.6 hours as of July 2, 2016. Most of his experience was in the accident airplane, which he purchased in 2005. His most recent flight review was on May 3, 2015, in the accident airplane.

According to the pilot's wife, the pilot typically flew between California and Idaho six or seven times per year, which required crossing the Sierra Nevada mountain range. His mountain flying experience also included multiple trips requiring passage over the Trinity Alps, Marble Mountains, the Cascades, and the mountainous terrain of southern California, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, and Washington.

According to his wife, the accident flight was one of the rare times he flew without a passenger. She stated that, on occasion, they had flown together in visual meteorological conditions while maneuvering through cloud layers, but he had never flown into clouds, and she was not aware of him flying in instrument meteorological conditions.

The pilot's wife reported that he was generally in good health, and that he was scheduled for a non-critical medical appointment 2 days after the accident. During the phone call from WMC, he did not mention that he was experiencing any physiological issues.

The pilot's wife stated that he had been under a significant amount of stress before the trip, but that at its conclusion, he sounded peaceful, revitalized, and relaxed, and he was ready to come home and get back to work. Regarding his personality, she stated that he was very much an "achiever;" at times could be headstrong; and once he had made up his mind, it was very hard to dissuade him. They had discussed the approaching weather system the day before the flight, and she had suggested he drive back with a friend, but he felt strongly that he should fly. AIRCRAFT INFORMATIONThe airplane was manufactured in 1960 and equipped with a Continental Motors O-470R normally aspirated engine and a two-bladed McCauley constant-speed propeller. The most recent maintenance procedure was an annual inspection, completed on February 20, 2016. At that time, the airframe had accrued 5,467.04 flight hours, and the engine had accrued 364.3 hours since overhaul in 2012. The tachometer indicated 2,462.6 hours at the time of the inspection, and following the accident, it indicated 2,532.5 hours.

According to the Cessna 182D owner's manual, when loaded to its maximum gross weight of 2,650 lbs, the airplane had a service ceiling of 19,800 ft and a maximum cruise endurance at 10,000 ft of 7.1 hours at 118 mph. At that altitude and given standard atmospheric conditions, the climb rates at weights of 2,100, 2,400, and 2,650 lbs were 925, 710, and 560 ft per minute, respectively.

The airplane was not equipped with an autopilot or a supple...