On September 27, 1982, a Cessna 305A (registration N5196G) operated by Civil Air Patrol, Inc. was involved in an aviation accident near Belden, CA. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive; 5 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.
A search aircraft disappeared inverted into trees at the 4600-foot level during a mission, with wreckage located near parts of the object being sought.
What happened
During an active search mission, the subject aircraft was observed executing a turn. Following this maneuver, the aircraft appeared to slow significantly or pause momentarily in flight. Subsequently, it disappeared inverted into high trees situated at the 4600-foot level. The wreckage of the aircraft was destroyed by post-impact fire.
The investigation
The crash site was located in close proximity to the target of the search operation. Parts of the aircraft being searched for were found only 300 feet from the location where the subject aircraft crashed.
