What happened
On August 29, 2018, a Cessna P210, registration N6500W, was involved in a fatal accident in Prescott, Arizona. The flight was being conducted under Part 91 regulations for the purpose of the pilot acquiring night currency through practice takeoffs and landings at Prescott Regional Airport (PRC).
Initially, the pilot requested to use runway 21L, but the ground controller directed the pilot to use the parallel, narrower runway 21R because the traffic pattern for the longer runway was full. During the flight, radar data showed that the aircraft's track on the downwind leg was not parallel to the runway and approached the end of the runway. The aircraft then performed a large 180-degree turn. While the pilot eventually aligned with runway 21R, the aircraft collided with desert terrain approximately 1,890 feet short of the runway threshold.
At the time of impact, the aircraft was in a near-level pitch attitude with the landing gear extended. Following the collision, the aircraft struck a berm and was destroyed by a postcrash fire. The pilot sustained 1 fatal injury.
The investigation
Investigators examined the wreckage and found the main airframe and engine distributed over a 240-foot area. The fuselage came to rest upright and was partially consumed by fire. The engine was found to be intact, and a manual rotation of the crankshaft was possible. Examination of the spark plugs indicated lean to normal engine operation, and no foreign object damage or detonation was found during a borescope examination of the cylinders.
A crack was identified on the flange of the exhaust manifold, which was consistent with reverse bending fatigue. While the heat exchanger showed several voids via CT scan, investigators determined these were unlikely to have allowed exhaust gases to enter the cabin due to the higher pressure of the ram air.
Findings
- The pilot experienced a visual illusion caused by the narrow 60-foot width of runway 21R, which can lead a pilot to believe the aircraft is at a higher altitude than it actually is.
- The lack of a natural horizon and limited external visual references during the night approach contributed to the difficulty in judging height above the terrain.
- The pilot was managing competing visual tasks, including maintaining separation from traffic on runway 21L and aligning with the narrow runway 21R.
- The pilot's recent night flying experience was limited, with his last night flight occurring in November 2017.
- Postmortem toxicology showed 35% carboxyhemoglobin, but the presence of soot in the airways indicated this was a postcrash effect from the fire rather than a cause of incapacitation.