ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 178741
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.
| Date: | Sunday 16 August 2015 |
| Time: | 11:03 |
| Type: |  Cessna 172M Skyhawk |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N1285U |
| MSN: | 17266979 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1976 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 4 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near San Diego-Brown Field Municipal Airport (SDM/KSDM), CA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Gillespie Field Airport, CA (SEE) |
| San Diego-Brown Field Municipal Airport, CA (SDM) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Two airplanes, a Cessna 172M Skyhawk, N1285U, and a Rockwell Sabreliner 60SC, N442RM, collided midair approximately 1 mile northeast of San Diego-Brown Field Municipal Airport (SDM), California. The two pilots and two mission specialists aboard the Sabreliner were fatally injured. The pilot of the Cessna, the sole occupant of the airplane, was fatally injured.
The Cessna 172 (N1285U) was conducting touch-and-go landings at Brown Field Municipal Airport (SDM), San Diego, California, and the experimental North American Rockwell NA265-60SC Sabreliner (N442RM, call sign Eagle1) was returning to SDM from a mission flight. SDM has two parallel runways, 8R/26L and 8L/26R; it is common in west operations for controllers to use a right traffic pattern for both runways 26R and 26L due to the proximity of Tijuana Airport, Tijuana, Mexico, to the south of SDM. On the morning of the accident, the air traffic control tower (ATCT) at SDM had both control positions (local and ground control) in the tower combined at the local control position, which was staffed by a local controller (LC)/controller-in-charge, who was conducting on-the-job training with a developmental controller (LC trainee). The LC trainee was transmitting control instructions for all operations; however, the LC was monitoring the LC trainee's actions and was responsible for all activity at that position.
About 13 minutes before the accident, the N1285U pilot contacted the ATCT and requested touch-and-go landings in the visual flight rules (VFR) traffic pattern. About that time, another Cessna 172 (N6ZP) and a helicopter (N8360R) were conducting operations in the VFR traffic pattern, and a Cessna 206 Stationair (N5058U) was inbound for landing. Over the next 5 minutes, traffic increased, with two additional aircraft inbound for landing. (Figure 1 in the factual report for this accident shows the aircraft in the SDM traffic pattern about 8 minutes before the accident.)
The LC trainee cleared the N1285U pilot for a touch-and-go on runway 26R; the pilot acknowledged the clearance and then advised the LC trainee that he was going to go around. The LC trainee advised the N1285U pilot to expect runway 26L on the next approach. At that time, three aircraft were using runway 26R (Global Express [N18WZ] was inbound for landing, N6ZP was on a right base for a touch-and-go, and a Cessna Citation [XALVV] was on short final) and three aircraft were using runway 26L (N1285U was turning right downwind for the touch-and-go, a Skybolt [N81962] was on a left downwind for landing, and N8360R was conducting a touch-and-go landing). After N1285U completed the touch-and-go on runway 26L, the pilot entered a right downwind for runway 26R.
Meanwhile, Eagle1 was 9 miles west of the airport and requested a full-stop landing; the LC trainee instructed the Eagle1 flight crew to enter a right downwind for runway 26R at or above an altitude of 2,000 ft mean sea level. At this time, about 3 minutes before the accident, the qualified LC terminated the LC trainee's training and took over control of radio communications. From this time until the collision occurred, the LC was controlling nine aircraft. (Figure 2 and Figure 4 in the factual report for this accident show the total number of aircraft under ATCT control shortly before the accident.)
During the next 2 minutes, the LC made several errors. For example, after N6ZP completed a touch-and-go on runway 26R, the pilot requested a right downwind departure from the area, which the LC initially failed to acknowledge. The LC also instructed the N5058U pilot, who had been holding short of runway 26L, that he was cleared for takeoff from runway 26R. Both errors were corrected. In addition, the LC instructed the helicopter pilot to "listen up. turn crosswind" before correcting the instruction 4 seconds later to "turn base." (Figure 2 in the factual report for this accident shows the aircraft in the traffic pattern about 2 minutes before the accident.)
About 1 minute before the collision, the Eagle1 flight crew reported on downwind midfield and stated that they had traffic to the left and right in sight. At that time, N1285U was to Eagle1's right, between Eagle1 and the tower, and established on a right downwind about 500 ft below Eagle1's position. N6ZP was about 1 mile forward and to the left of Eagle1, heading northeast and departing the area. Mistakenly identifying the Cessna to the right o
Probable Cause: The local controller's (LC) failure to properly identify the aircraft in the pattern and to ensure control instructions provided to the intended Cessna on downwind were being performed before turning Eagle1 into its path for landing. Contributing to the LC's actions was his incomplete situational awareness when he took over communications from the LC trainee due to the high workload at the time of the accident. Contributing to the accident were the inherent limitations of the see-and-avoid concept, resulting in the inability of the pilots involved to take evasive action in time to avert the collision.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
NTSB final report
ASN main article about this crash
Location
Images:
Photo(c): NTSB
Media:
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 16-Aug-2015 19:07 | gerard57 | Added |
| 16-Aug-2015 20:23 | Geno | Updated [Aircraft type, Location, Phase, Nature, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 16-Aug-2015 21:03 | Geno | Updated [Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Source, Narrative] |
| 16-Aug-2015 22:12 | Geno | Updated [Total fatalities, Total occupants, Source, Narrative] |
| 17-Aug-2015 05:25 | Geno | Updated [Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities] |
| 17-Aug-2015 06:31 | gerard57 | Updated [Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Source, Narrative] |
| 17-Aug-2015 09:24 | Aerossurance | Updated [Nature, Source, Narrative] |
| 17-Aug-2015 12:45 | 78Delta | Updated [Registration, Cn] |
| 17-Aug-2015 19:46 | Iceman29 | Updated [Embed code] |
| 17-Aug-2015 20:03 | harro | Updated [Embed code] |
| 18-Aug-2015 08:12 | Alpine Flight | Updated [Time, Aircraft type] |
| 18-Aug-2015 17:30 | mren | Updated [Departure airport] |
| 19-Aug-2015 16:24 | Mike F | Updated [Narrative] |
| 04-Sep-2015 13:19 | Aerossurance | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:30 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 01-Dec-2017 15:09 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 21-Jan-2018 20:08 | Medevac | Updated [Embed code] |
| 21-Jan-2018 20:27 | Medevac | Updated [Other fatalities, Source, Embed code, Narrative] |
| 07-Mar-2022 01:22 | Captain Adam | Updated [Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category, Photo] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:
| ASN Home | Send Correction / Feedback |
| FSF Home | Disclaimer | Copyright |
| Contact Us | Privacy Policy |
| Press / Media |
CONNECT WITH US:
©2024 Flight Safety Foundation