Cessna 172M accident near Joshua Tree, California, January 18, 2010
On January 18, 2010 at about 4:24 pm local time, a Cessna 172M, registered N13073, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Joshua Tree, California. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were seriously injured. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The certified flight instructor's decision to continue visual flight into deteriorating weather, which resulted in his inadvertent encounter with instrument meteorological conditions and subsequent failure to maintain clearance with terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 18, 2010 · about 4:24 pm local time
- Place
- Joshua Tree, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172M · all 172Ms on the register
- Registration
- N13073 · no longer on the register · serial 17262476
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The certified flight instructor (CFI) and his student pilot began the instructional flight from an uncontrolled airport with an elevation of 2,464 feet mean sea level (msl). They planned to fly to a controlled airport (elevation 477 feet msl) located about 27 miles of their departure airport. En route, the pilots climbed to at least 6,000 feet msl and encountered several layers of clouds. At their destination airport, about 30 minutes before to about 30 minutes after the accident, clouds were reported at various elevations including 3,800; 5,000; 6,500 and 7,500 feet msl. The student pilot reported that while en route he observed clouds above, below, and at the airplane's cruise altitude with the visibility from 1/2 to 1 mile. Just before the accident sequence began, the CFI was handling the flight controls while trying to fly around the clouds and collided into a mountain at 5,250-foot msl. Near the time of the accident a witness, located about 2 miles from the crash site, observed thick fog covering the roadway on which he was traveling. The accident location was about 14 miles from the departure airport. Terrain in the vicinity was depicted on the appropriate aeronautical chart with peak elevations between 5,600 and 5,800 feet msl. Following recovery, the airplane was examined, during which no evidence was found of any preimpact malfunction or failure.
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
- VFR encounter with IMC during enroute (cruise)
- Loss of visual reference during enroute (cruise) defining event
- Controlled flight into terrain or object (CFIT) during enroute (cruise)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Instructor/check pilot
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Terrain › Mountainous/hilly terrain › Contributed to outcome
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Altitude › Not attained/maintained
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Ceiling/visibility/precip › Low ceiling › Contributed to outcome
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Ceiling/visibility/precip › Low visibility › Contributed to outcome
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,000 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: serious injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 81 hours in all; 81 in this make and model; 10 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 45 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,285 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 16, 2009; 91 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 SERIES (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: L80 Joshua Tree CA at 4:00 pm
- Destination: PSP Palm Springs CA
- Flight plan: none
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 7,000 ft; a few clouds at 4,500 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.89 inHg
- Observation at 3:53 pm from PSP, 20 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
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.