Controlled Flight Into Terrain · NTSB WPR17FA025
PIPER PA 28-181 — Upland, CA
| Date | November 22, 2016 |
| Location | Upland, CA |
| Aircraft | PIPER PA 28-181 |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Night/Dark · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Enroute-climb to cruise Controlled flight into terr/obj (CFIT) |
| Pilot age | 66 |
| Pilot total time | 2,558 hrs · Experienced |
| Time in type | 13 hrs |
| Fatalities | 1 |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Altitude-Not attained/maintained - C
- Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Monitoring environment-Pilot - C
- Environmental issues-Physical environment-Terrain-Mountainous/hilly terrain-Contributed to outcome
- Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Light condition-Dark-Effect on operation
What happened
The private pilot departed from a non-towered airport in dark night conditions destined for an airport located about 15 nautical miles southeast; a direct route of flight between the two airports would require flight through controlled (Class C) airspace. Radar data showed that, after departure, the pilot conducted a left climbing turn, then proceeded north (as prescribed for noise abatement procedures at the airport), and remained clear of the controlled airspace, toward an area of dark, unpopulated, rising terrain. About 3 minutes after departure, the pilot contacted the local controller. While talking to the controller, the pilot's transmission suddenly stopped, and the airplane was lost from radar at an altitude about 3,000 ft mean sea level in the vicinity of the accident site.
The accident site was located on steep, rising terrain at an elevation about 2,920 ft. Ground scars indicated that the airplane was in a nearly wings-level attitude at the time of impact. There were no preimpact anomalies with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. It is likely that, while communicating with the controller, the pilot did not monitor and maintain situational awareness as the airplane approached mountainous, unlit terrain.