Loss of Control in Flight · NTSB ANC17FA012
PIPER PA 11 — Aniak, AK
| Date | December 16, 2016 |
| Location | Aniak, AK |
| Aircraft | PIPER PA 11 |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Day · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Enroute Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT) |
| Pilot age | 62 |
| Pilot total time | 4,500 hrs · High time |
| Time in type | Unknown |
| Fatalities | 2 |
Probable cause
The pilot's intentional flight of the airplane into terrain in an act of suicide.
NTSB findings
- Personnel issues-Miscellaneous-Intentional act-Suicide-Pilot - C
What happened
The private pilot and a passenger departed on a flight to an airstrip about 40 nautical miles away. When they failed to return as scheduled, family members notified law enforcement, and the wreckage was subsequently located in an area of snow-covered, rising terrain. Postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.
Following a death investigation, the State Medical Examiner classified the manner of death as a suicide.