Cessna 182P accident near Goldendale, Washington, February 23, 2006
On February 23, 2006 at about 4:50 am local time, a Cessna 182P, registered N888SR, was destroyed in an accident near Goldendale, Washington. It was flown under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain terrain clearance during descent. Factors contributing to the accident were the high mountains, mountain obscuration, the dark night condition, and the pilot's improper in-flight planning/decision making.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 23, 2006 · about 4:50 am local time
- Place
- Goldendale, Washington · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182P · all 182Ps on the register
- Registration
- N888SR · registry record · serial 182-61455
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Prior to departing on the first leg of the night cross-country cargo flight, the pilot obtained a weather briefing which included an AIRMET that indicated mountains could be obscured by clouds, and that precipitation, mist and fog might be encountered over the route of flight. The pilot filed a VFR flight plan with a cruise altitude of 6,500 feet, departing at 1950 Pacific standard time. As the flight progressed, radar data indicated the following: at 2036:09 the airplane was 20 nm north of the accident site proceeding south at an altitude of 6,400 feet; at 2046:17 the airplane was 1.16 nm from the accident site and continued to proceed south at an altitude of 6,300 feet; from 2046:17 to 2046:53, when the last encoded altitude was received, the airplane had descended from 6,300 feet to 5,500 feet on a southerly heading; radar contact was lost at 2048. The airplane impacted trees in mountainous terrain at an elevation of 5,099 feet. Search and rescue personnel who reached the accident site 5 hours after the accident, reported hard blowing snow, winds from the west at 30 miles per hours, and from 3 to 4 feet of fresh snow covering the area. One search and rescue volunteer, who resides 12 miles south of the accident site, at an elevation of 1,678 feet, revealed that between 2100 and 2200 on the evening of the accident, there was a light rain falling and that the temperature was 34 degrees F. A post-accident examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of any mechanical anomalies which would have prevented normal operation.
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: commercial pilot, flight engineer
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 699 hours in all; 36 in this make and model; 51 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 660 as pilot in command; 252 on instruments
- Last flight review: February 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,983 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, February 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 2,950 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-R (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Wings Of Wenatchee INC
The flight
- Departed from: EAT Wenatchee WA at 3:50 am
- Destination: PDX Portland OR
- Flight plan: VFR
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 340° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 4,900 ft
- Temperature: 45°F (7°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.23 inHg
- Observation at 4:53 am from KDLS, 30 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.