At about 2021 Pacific time, the airplane cruised into a telephone line. The fuselage, including the cockpit and instrument panel, were consumed by a post-impact fire. The commercial pilot and passenger were fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed for the dusk flight. A witness reported hearing the airplane, which he described as sounding normal, but did not see the impact. Immediately after the engine sound stopped, he observed a fire in the river bed, proceeded toward the fire and observed the accident airplane engulfed in flames. On-scene examination revealed a downed telephone line oriented in a north-south direction. Fragmented airplane components were found west of the line. The first observed airplane-to-ground impact signatures were found about 180 feet west of the area where the line had been suspended.
July 3, 2011, Santa Paula, Calif., Cessna 180D
At about 2021 Pacific time, the airplane cruised into a telephone line. The fuselage, including the cockpit and instrument panel, were consumed by a post-impact fire. The commercial pilot and passenger were fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed for the dusk flight.
Key Takeaways:
- An airplane struck a telephone line around 2021 Pacific time during a dusk flight, resulting in a post-impact fire that consumed the fuselage and fatally injured the commercial pilot and passenger.
- A witness reported hearing normal engine sounds before the impact and then observed a fire where the airplane was engulfed in flames.
- On-scene examination found a downed telephone line and fragmented airplane components, with initial ground impact signatures located about 180 feet west of where the line had been suspended.
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