Diamond Aircraft Ind INC DA-40 accident near Arcata, California, March 2, 2009
On March 2, 2009 at about 7:00 am local time, a Diamond Aircraft Ind INC DA-40, registered N521DS, was destroyed in an accident during approach (IFR final approach) near Arcata, California (Arcata airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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 proper altitude and glidepath while executing a night instrument approach. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's fatigue.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 2, 2009 · about 7:00 am local time
- Place
- Arcata, California · Arcata · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Diamond Aircraft Ind INC DA-40
- Registration
- N521DS · no longer on the register · serial 40.621
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was executing an over-water instrument approach to Runway 14 on a dark night in an area of moderate to heavy precipitation and light to moderate turbulence. Based upon the airplane's descent profile, recorded radar data, local ocean currents, and the ultimate distribution of debris along the beach, the airplane impacted the ocean's surface about one-half mile offshore and about seven statute miles northwest of the Arcata Airport. In the forty-two hours immediately preceding the accident, the pilot had flown about twenty hours and forty-five minutes, and had crossed four time zones. There was no record of the pilot acquiring a weather briefing relating to his destination on the day of the accident.
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
What happened, in order
- Controlled flight into terrain or object (CFIT) during approach (IFR final approach) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Incorrect action performance › Pilot
- factor Personnel issues › Physical › Alertness/Fatigue › Circadian rhythms or jetlag › Pilot
- factor Personnel issues › Physical › Alertness/Fatigue › (general) › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Descent/approach/glide path › Incorrect use/operation
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Light condition › Dark › Effect on operation
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,203 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 652 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, February 17, 2009; 652 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,535 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine 1: Lycoming IO-360-MIA (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Mitchell Enterprizes Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: KBFL Bakersfield CA at 3:36 am
- Destination: KACV Arcata Airport CA
- Flight plan: IFR
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 190° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,800 ft; scat at 1,900 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.69 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 am from KACV, 7 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.