Rockwell 114 accident near Los Gatos, California, May 25, 1987
On May 25, 1987 at about 11:29 pm local time, a Rockwell 114, registered N114CH, was destroyed in an accident near Los Gatos, California. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 25, 1987 · about 11:29 pm local time
- Place
- Los Gatos, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Rockwell 114
- Registration
- N114CH · registry record · serial 14164
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DRG A PREFLT WX BRIEFING, THE PLT WAS ADZD THE FORECAST FOR OAKLAND (19 MI NNW OF HIS DESTN) WAS FOR A 3000' BROKEN CEILING WITH OCCASIONAL 3000' SCATTERED, 5000' BROKEN & A CHANCE OF LIGHT RAIN SHOWERS. HE FILED A VFR FLT PLAN & DEPD. AT 1347 PDT, THE PLT OPENED HIS FLT PLAN & PROCEEDED WITHOUT FURTHER COMMUNICATION UNTIL HE WAS ABOUT 45 MI SE OF HIS DESTN. AT 1615 PDT, HE CONTACTED BAY TRACON & ASKED FOR & RCVD TRAFFIC ADZYS. ABOUT 12 TO 14 MIN LATER, RADIO & RADAR CONTACT WERE LOST. THE ACFT CRASHED ABOUT 22 MI FROM THE DESTN WHEN IT IMPACTED JUST BELOW THE TOP OF A MTN PEAK AT AN ELEV OF APRX 3350'. NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND. PSNL IN THE VCNTY OF THE ACDNT SITE SAID THERE WAS FOG WITH A VISIBILITY OF 50' TO 100'. THE CLOUD BASES IN THAT AREA WERE ESTIMATED TO BE ABOUT 800' BELOW THE ACDNT SITE. SVRL PEOPLE, WHO KNEW THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PLT, SAID HE OFTEN FLEW IN CLOUDS.
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; single-engine sea
- Flight time: 1,100 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,496 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 15, 1986; 165 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,140 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CRQ Carlsbad CA at 8:47 pm
- Destination: PAO Palo Alto CA
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 225° at 10 knots
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number LAX87FA212.