VFR into IMC · NTSB ERA17FA073
CESSNA 182 — Gatlinburg, TN
| Date | December 26, 2016 |
| Location | Gatlinburg, TN |
| Aircraft | CESSNA 182 |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Day · Instrument Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Enroute-descent Controlled flight into terr/obj (CFIT) |
| Pilot age | 41 |
| Pilot total time | 272 hrs · Low time |
| Time in type | 219 hrs |
| Fatalities | 3 |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Decision making/judgment-Pilot
- Personnel issues-Experience/knowledge-Experience/qualifications-Total instrument experience-Pilot
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Altitude-Not attained/maintained
- Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Ceiling/visibility/precip-Low visibility-Effect on operation
- Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Ceiling/visibility/precip-Low visibility-Decision related to condition
- Personnel issues-Psychological-Personality/attitude-Personality-Pilot
- Personnel issues-Psychological-Personality/attitude-Self confidence-Pilot
- Personnel issues-Physical-Health/Fitness-Use of medication/drugs-Pilot
What happened
The non-instrument-rated private pilot elected to conduct the cross-country flight over mountainous terrain without obtaining a weather briefing or filing a flight plan. As he approached his destination, the pilot requested a descent from his cruising altitude of 9,500 ft mean sea level (msl), which was approved by air traffic control. The controller instructed the pilot to maintain visual flight rules flight throughout his descent. Instead, the pilot descended the airplane into a cloud layer between 7,000 ft msl to 5,000 ft msl despite his instructions from air traffic control. Radar data and satellite weather imagery depicted the airplane in a steady-state descent inside a solid cloud layer which tracked north, directly toward the destination airport. The radar track ended at 5,400 ft. msl abeam a mountain peak at 6,500 feet elevation. The accident site was located at 5,400 ft in steep, mountainous terrain about 15 miles south of the destination airport at the same position as the last radar target.
Examination of the wreckage revealed no pre-impact mechanical anomalies and signatures consistent with controlled flight into terrain.
The pilot had a history of disregard for established rules and regulations. The pilot's airplane was about 2 months overdue for an annual inspection. He was counseled numerous times by an experienced flight instructor about his unsafe practice of operating the airplane in instrument meteorological conditions without an instrument rating, but he continued to do so over a period of 2 years and again on the accident flight. His contempt for rules and regulations was consistent with an anti-authority attitude, which is hazardous to safe operation of aircraft. The pilot had used the potentially-impairing stimulant phentermine at some time before the flight, but the samples available for testing were inadequate to quantify impairment. Therefore, it could not be determined if the pilot's use of phentermine contributed to this accident.