Twenty-five years ago, a Seattle-area pilot tried to do his mother a favor. He would take her to visit a friend on the other side of the Cascades. Their route would go through the Snoqualmie Pass, which, on the day of the trip, was unfortunately beset by fog and low-lying clouds. The pilot was instrument-rated, but the rented Cessna 152 he was flying was not instrument-equipped. He followed Interstate 90. At a certain point, fog blocked the way, and the pilot decided to turn back. In the turn, he inadvertently flew into cloud, clipped a tree and crashed. Mother and son died together.
Aftermath: Mountain, Cloud, Highway
Key Takeaways:
- The article compares the fatal Kobe Bryant helicopter crash to a 25-year-old Cessna accident, both involving VFR-rated pilots encountering severe Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC).
- The earlier Cessna crash resulted from a pilot losing visual cues and crashing during a turn-back attempt while flying VFR through fog in a mountainous pass.
- While initially appearing similar, preliminary NTSB findings for the Bryant crash revealed the helicopter climbed near cloud tops before an unintended left bank and steep descent, indicating spatial disorientation rather than an intentional maneuver to reverse course.
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