What happened
On the morning of the accident, a positioning flight departed from Oxnard, California, with an intended destination of San Diego, California. The flight operated under a special VFR clearance, and no formal flight plan had been filed for the journey. During the transit, the aircraft passed through the NAWS Point Mugu airspace.
Radar monitoring was provided by the Point Mugu radar approach control for approximately 25 miles of the flight path. During this period, the pilot was instructed to switch frequencies to SOCAL Tracon; however, no communication was established with that facility. Subsequent analysis of radar records indicated that the aircraft type was flying at a level of 1,800 feet MSL before climbing to approximately 2,000 feet MSL, at which point it vanished from radar surveillance.
Following the aircraft's failure to reach its destination, a search operation was launched. The aircraft was eventually located after an uncontrolled descent into the Pacific Ocean, roughly 14 miles west-southwest of El Segundo, California. The impact resulted in the total destruction of the aircraft, and the pilot was presumed fatally injured.
Findings
- At the time of the incident, cloud tops were reported at approximately 1,200 feet MSL.
- Approximately 90 minutes after the accident, search efforts were conducted under visual meteorological conditions.
- The aircraft disappeared from radar immediately following a climb to 2,000 feet MSL.