Controlled Flight Into Terrain · NTSB ERA15FA299
PIPER PA-28R — Marathon, FL
| Date | August 10, 2015 |
| Location | Marathon, FL |
| Aircraft | PIPER PA-28R |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Night/Dark · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Initial climb Controlled flight into terr/obj (CFIT) |
| Pilot age | 53 |
| Pilot total time | 126 hrs · Low time |
| Time in type | 4 hrs |
| Fatalities | 1 |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Personnel issues-Psychological-Perception/orientation/illusion-Visual illusion/disorientation-Pilot - C
- Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Use of equip/system-Pilot - C
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Climb rate-Not attained/maintained - C
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Lateral/bank control-Not attained/maintained - C
- Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Light condition-Dark-Effect on personnel - C
- Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Decision making/judgment-Pilot - F
What happened
According to the airplane owner, the noninstrument-rated pilot had rented the airplane in Palm Beach, Florida, 1 day before the accident and was not scheduled to return the airplane until the day after the accident. The rental agreement prohibited night flight to or from the Florida Keys. However, about 4 hours after sunset on the night of the accident, the pilot departed an airport on the Florida Keys. Airport security video recorded the airplane becoming airborne, climbing, and beginning to turn right. A witness reported seeing the airplane descending into the water with the engines running. The flight was conducted on a dark, moonless night, and in a sparsely populated area of Florida near the water. No visible horizon could be seen on the video. Based on the dark night conditions, the lack of visual reference at the time of the accident, the pilot's low overall flight time, and the pilot's lack of an instrument rating, it is likely that he became spatially disoriented, which led to the subsequent descent into water.
Examination of the wreckage revealed a right wing low attitude at the time of the impact, which was consistent with the pilot maintaining the right turn seen in the security video recordings. Examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or abnormalities that would have precluded normal operation.