ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 38691
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| Date: | Sunday 26 November 2000 |
| Time: | 17:10 |
| Type: |  Cessna 172N |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N6521D |
| MSN: | 17272842 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1979 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 3408 hours |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Katy, TX -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | San Antonio, TX (SAT) |
| Baytown, TX (3R1) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The Cessna 172 was flying level at 2,000 feet, eastbound, when the pilot noticed the Cessna 150 approaching from her left side at a 90-degree angle (from the north). She reported that the Cessna 150 was at an altitude slightly below her airplane's altitude. She entered a climbing right turn and, subsequently, the airplanes collided. The Cessna 172's right main landing gear separated and its right wing and aileron were structurally damaged. The Cessna 172 was able to sustain flight and landed at an airport located approximately 10 miles from the collision area. The Cessna 150 entered an uncontrolled descent and impacted the ground. Two witnesses reported sun glare from the west at the time of the accident. One pilot witness, who departed near the same time as the Cessna 150, and flew the same route as the Cessna 150, stated that the sun was "blinding from [his] 2:00 o'clock to 4:00 o'clock position." He added that the visibility to the south and east was 15 miles or greater and the sky was clear of clouds. Another pilot witness, who departed from the airport the Cessna 172 landed at about 10 minutes before the accident, and was traveling on a northwesterly heading, reported that he observed a "very strong sun glare" and it "seemed impossible to see within plus or minus 15 degrees from the sun's bearing." The witness added that a cold front had passed through the area the day before the accident, and the sky was clear of clouds and haze.
Probable Cause: the failure of both pilots to maintain visual lookout during cruise flight. A contributory factor was sun glare, which obscured the Cessna 150 pilot's visual lookout.
Sources:
NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20001212X22287&key=1
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 24-Oct-2008 10:30 | ASN archive | Added |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:23 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 12-Dec-2017 19:30 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Total occupants, Source, Narrative] |
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