Cessna P210N accident near Mammoth Lakes, California, June 17, 1995
On June 17, 1995 at about 5:30 am local time, a Cessna P210N, registered N333HF, was destroyed in an accident near Mammoth Lakes, California. 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 continued flight into instrument meteorological conditions during dark nighttime over mountainous terrain; and his failure to maintain an adequate altitude to ensure terrain clearance. Thw weather and terrain were factors.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 17, 1995 · about 5:30 am local time
- Place
- Mammoth Lakes, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna P210N · all P210Ns on the register
- Registration
- N333HF · registry record · serial P21000598
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot had received four weather briefings prior to departing on the cross-country flight between Long Beach and Mammoth, California. The briefer informed the pilot that variable weather conditions existed, including mixed icing in clouds, mountain obscurement, and precipitation. No flight plan was filed for the dark nighttime flight over the high mountainous terrain. Witnesses heard the airplane, with its engine running, collide with trees and terrain near their mountain campground. The accident site was at an approximate elevation of 7,300 feet msl. The witnesses estimated that the ceiling was about 200 feet above ground level, and snowing. The pilot's medical certificate had expired. The FAA declined to issue the pilot another medical certificate because his diabetes was insufficiently controlled.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,900 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (expired)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,200 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 16, 1995; 50 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-P6 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: LGB Long Beach CA at 4:30 am
- Destination: MMH CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 340° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 5,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:56 am from BIH, 21 miles away
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.