Cessna 182E accident near El Prado, New Mexico, February 25, 2000
On February 25, 2000 at about 1:45 am local time, a Cessna 182E, registered N2988Y, was destroyed in an accident near El Prado, New Mexico (Taos Municipal airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper preflight planning/preparation in that he initiated flight into known adverse weather, and continued VFR flight into IMC to the point where remedial action was not possible. Factors were the weather conditions that included snow, low ceiling, and obscuration, a dark night, and his overconfidence in his abilities. **This case was modified on February 27, 2008.**
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 25, 2000 · about 1:45 am local time
- Place
- El Prado, New Mexico · Taos Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182E · all 182Es on the register
- Registration
- N2988Y · no longer on the register · serial 18253988
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The instrument rated private pilot received an in-person abbreviated weather briefing from the Albuquerque Flight Service Station (FSS), and local weather reports from a friend who lived near the Taos Municipal Airport via telephone and aircraft radio. FSS advised the pilot that VFR flight was not recommended due to mountain tops being obscured, turbulence, and icing conditions. His friend said it was snowing at his home. The pilot then filed a VFR flight plan for the dark night cross country flight, and departed Albuquerque for Taos. Later, he radioed his friend and told him that the snow had moved in behind him, he had the airport in sight, but was having difficulty maintaining visual contact with the runway lights because he was 'in and out of snow showers.' The airplane impacted terrain 1.5 miles east of the airport. Toxicological tests revealed that the pilot, a psychiatrist, had recently taken fluoxetine (also known by the trade name Prozac), a prescription antidepressant medication not approved for flight. **This case was modified on February 27, 2008.**
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 732 hours in all; 630 in this make and model; 17 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 666 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,108 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 13, 1999; 58 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-R (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ABQ Albuquerque NM
- Destination: SKX Taos NM
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 22, 5,798 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 280° at 11 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,100 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.