Cessna TR182 accident near Desert Aire, Washington, November 6, 1998
On November 6, 1998 at about 8:25 pm local time, a Cessna TR182, registered N756YE, was substantially damaged in an accident near Desert Aire, Washington. It was a public-use flight under public-use (government) rules. 2 people were killed and 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain adequate altitude and/or clearance over a power line crossing the river, resulting in collision with a static wire at the top of the crossing structure. Factors included the static wire, and inadequate marking of the static wire.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 6, 1998 · about 8:25 pm local time
- Place
- Desert Aire, Washington · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna TR182 · all TR182s on the register
- Registration
- N756YE · no longer on the register · serial R18201194
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Public-use flight · public-use (government) rules
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Approximately 4 hours into a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFand WS) low-level waterfowl survey flight along the Columbia River, while flying down river (eastbound), the aircraft struck a static line on a power line crossing the river and crashed into the river. The pilot escaped the aircraft with serious injuries, but two USFand WS employees aboard the aircraft, acting as observers for the waterfowl survey, did not escape the submerged aircraft and drowned. The pilot reported that at the time of the wire strike, he saw the transmission lines and towers and was climbing to clear the transmission lines, but that he was unaware of the smaller-diameter static line's presence above the transmission lines and did not see it. The aircraft struck the static line 122 feet above the surface. The static line, the highest wire on the structure, was not marked according to current FAA standards. An FAA aerial survey of the crossing conducted after the accident revealed that while an adjacent power line crossing approximately 1/4 mile east of the accident crossing was conspicuously marked and lighted, the lines which were struck were very difficult to see even in good visibility conditions.
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: 5,244 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 320 in the last 90 days; 85 in the last 30 days; 5,204 as pilot in command; 2,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,170 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 1, 1998; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,100 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-L3C5D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: S98 Kennewick WA at 4:30 pm
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | 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.