Cessna 177RG accident near Petaluma, California, October 3, 1993
On October 3, 1993 at about 6:29 am local time, a Cessna 177RG, registered N45022, was destroyed in an accident near Petaluma, California (Petaluma Municipal airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
VFR FLIGHT BY THE PILOT(S) INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC), AND FAILURE TO MAINTAIN A PROPER ALTITUDE AND/OR CLEARANCE FROM TERRAIN, WHILE APPROACHING THE DESTINATION AIRPORT. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE LOW CEILING AND TERRAIN.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 3, 1993 · about 6:29 am local time
- Place
- Petaluma, California · Petaluma Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 177RG · all 177RGs on the register
- Registration
- N45022 · no longer on the register · serial 177RG1089
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRPLANE WAS ON A CROSS-COUNTY FLIGHT ON A BRIGHT MOONLIT NIGHT FROM RENO, NV, TO PETALUMA, CA. DURING ARRIVAL, THE AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH RISING TERRAIN ABOUT 4 MILES SOUTHEAST OF THE AIRPORT AT ABOUT 400' MSL. ABOUT 25 MILES NORTH- WEST AT SONOMA COUNTY AIRPORT, THE 2340 PDT WEATHER WAS IN PART: 400' OVERCAST, 10 MILES VISIBILITY, WIND FROM 140 DEG AT 5 KTS. A COMMERCIAL PILOT REPORTED THAT EARLIER THAT EVENING, CLOUD BASES AT PETALUMA WERE BETWEEN 300' & 400' AGL. ON THE FOLLOWING MORNING, CLOUD BASES WERE STILL PRESENT AT ABOUT 400' AGL. THE AIRPLANE WAS EQUIPPED WITH DUAL VOR'S & LORAN & THERE WAS A PORTABLE GPS RECEIVER ABOARD. THE AIRPORT HAD A VOR (RWY 29) APPROACH. MINIMUM DESCENT ALTITUDE FOR THAT APPROACH WAS 1080' MSL, BUT THE FLIGHT HAD NO FLIGHT PLAN OR ATC CLEARANCE. THE OWNER/PILOT WAS NOT INSTRUMENT RATED, THOUGH ANOTHER PILOT, WHO WAS ABOARD, HAD A PRIVATE PILOT CERTIFICATE WITH AN INSTRUMENT RATING. INVESTIGATION DID NOT DETERMINE WHICH PILOT WAS FLYING THE AIRPLANE. NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE OF THE AIRPLANE WAS FOUND.
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
- Flight time: 1,300 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,513 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 24, 1993; 29 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-A1B6D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: RNO Reno NV at 5:14 am
- Destination: O69
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29, 3,600 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 140° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 400 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:40 am from STS, 21 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.