Controlled Flight Into Terrain · NTSB CEN15FA342
PIPER PA 32R-300 — Harbor Springs, MI
| Date | August 10, 2015 |
| Location | Harbor Springs, MI |
| Aircraft | PIPER PA 32R-300 |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Night/Dark · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Approach-VFR pattern final Controlled flight into terr/obj (CFIT) |
| Pilot age | 58 |
| Pilot total time | 407 hrs · Building experience |
| Time in type | 78 hrs |
| Fatalities | 1 |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Monitoring environment-Pilot - C
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Altitude-Not attained/maintained - C
- Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Light condition-Dark-Effect on personnel - C
- Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Tree(s)-Effect on operation
What happened
The private pilot was completing a long cross-country flight during dark, night visual meteorological conditions. While on a visual approach to the runway, the airplane impacted trees and terrain less than a mile from the end of the runway. The pilot had not logged night flight experience in several years and had not logged any night flight experience in the make and model of the accident airplane. Additionally, he had not logged a flight into the airport in his logbook.
The airport's tree obstructions and nonstandard precision approach path indicator with a 4.0-degree glidepath were noted in the airport facility directory. However, it was the pilot's first flight into the airport; thus, it is likely that his unfamiliarity with the airport environment, including the trees close proximity to the airport and nonstandard glidepath, and the dark, night conditions led to his failure to maintain clearance from the trees. The witness marks on the trees and the damage to the airplane were consistent with the airplane being in a relatively wings level descent when it impacted the tops of the trees. The condition of the landing gear and flaps were consistent with the airplane being configured to land. There were no mechanical anomalies with the airplane, engine, or related systems that would have precluded normal operation at the time of the accident.