Cessna T182 accident near Ludlow, California, April 6, 2012
On April 6, 2012 at about 3:15 am local time, a Cessna T182, registered N5201F, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering near Ludlow, California. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The in-flight loss of control due to the pilot’s impairment as a result of hypoxia. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s operation of the airplane above 12,500 feet without the aid of supplemental oxygen.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 6, 2012 · about 3:15 am local time
- Place
- Ludlow, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna T182 T · all T182s on the register
- Registration
- N5201F · no longer on the register · serial T18208152
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
After departing on a cross-country flight in night visual meteorological conditions, the pilot requested flight following from air traffic control. According to radar data, about 11 minutes after takeoff, the airplane leveled off at 14,800 feet mean sea level (msl). About 30 minutes later, when the airplane was still about 150 miles from its destination, air traffic controllers observed the airplane beginning to descend. When air traffic controllers subsequently questioned the pilot as to his intensions, the pilot’s responses were garbled and unintelligible. Radar data indicated that the airplane continued a meandering descent until it descended through about 11,000 feet msl and radar contact was lost. The airplane impacted terrain in a right-wing-low attitude, and the debris field extended about 830 feet. Postaccident examination revealed no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The investigation revealed that the pilot had flown for about 40 minutes at altitudes exceeding 12,500 feet msl, with much of that time spent at 14,600 feet msl. At these altitudes, without the use of supplemental oxygen, the pilot would have become hypoxic (insufficient brain oxygen). Although the pilot’s wife indicated that he typically used supplemental oxygen when operating above 11,000 feet msl and supplemental oxygen was available to the pilot during the flight, postaccident investigation indicated that no cockpit oxygen ports were in use when the accident occurred. The degree of hypoxia experienced by the pilot would have severely degraded his performance. Both the garbled transmissions to air traffic controllers and the airplane’s meandering flight path are consistent with the pilot experiencing symptomatic hypoxia. As the airplane descended during the last few minutes of the flight, the pilot’s oxygen saturation would have slowly improved; however, the rate of descent was likely too rapid to allow the pilot to recover his vision and judgment in time to prevent 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
- Altitude deviation during enroute
- Loss of control in flight during maneuvering defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during uncontrolled descent
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Physical › Impairment/incapacitation › Hypoxia/anoxia › Pilot
- factor Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 728 hours in all; 464 in this make and model; 19 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 529 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: October 8, 2011
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,269 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 4, 2011
- Maximum gross weight: 3,100 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming TIO540 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: IFP Bullhead City AZ at 2:20 am
- Destination: SMO Santa Monica CA
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: night, bright
- Wind: from 250° at 24 knots, gusting 35
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 18°F (-8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.87 inHg
- Observation at 2:50 am from DAG, 41 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.