Piper PA-28-160 N5572W

Summary

On 14 March 1989 at about 05:24 local time, a Piper PA-28-160 registered N5572W, operated by Davis, Daniel C., was involved in an accident near Holley, Florida, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

14 March 1989 at 05:24

Classification

Accident

Location

Holley, Florida, United States

Coordinates

30.4207, -86.6099

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-160

Registration

N5572W

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Davis, Daniel C.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Tallahassee → Pensacola

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

Unk

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

MIA89FA108

1 person died.

CONTINUED FLIGHT BY THE PLT INTO ADVERSE WX, FOLLOWED BY SPATIAL DISORIENTATION AND LOSS OF AIRCRAFT CONTROL. LACK OF A PREFLIGHT WEATHER BRIEFING, WEATHER CONDITIONS, AND LACK OF VISUAL CUES AT NIGHT WERE CONSIDERED CONTRIBUTING FACTORS.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

DRG A NGT X-COUNTRY FLT, THE PLT WAS RCVG VFR FLT FLWG FM EGLIN AFB APCH CTL. WHILE CRUISING AT 4500 FT, HE OBTAINED WX FOR THE AREA. HE WAS ADZD THAT ACCORDING TO 1 HR OLD OBSNS, WX AT EGLIN WAS 1700' SCT, & AT CRESTVIEW, THERE WAS A 3000'BKN CEILING. THE PLT ELECTED TO DSCND THRU 'THIS THIN LAYER' TO 1500' & WAS ADZD TO REMAIN VFR. SUBSEQUENTLY, HE RPRTD AT 1500', THEN WAS ADZD TO CTC PENSACOLA APCH CTL, SINCE HE WAS LEAVING EGLIN'S AIRSPACE. THE PLT ACKNOWLEDGED, BUT THERE WAS NO FURTHER RADIO CTC WITH THE ACFT. A SEARCH WAS INITIATED & THE ACFT WAS FND 5 DAYS LTR WHERE IT HAD CRASHED IN A REMOTE/UNLIGHTED AREA ON A BOMBING RANGE. AN EXAM OF THE ACFT REVEALED IT HAD CRASHED IN A STEEP, NOSE DOWN, RGT WING LOW ATTITUDE. NO PREIMPACT MECHANICAL PRBLM OF THE ACFT WAS FND, BUT IT WAS BADLY DMGD BY IMPACT & FIRE. ABT 22 MI WEST AT PENSACOLA, THE WX WAS 800' BKN, 1700' BKN, VIS 7 MI; ABT 17 MI EAST AT EGLIN, THE WX WAS PTLY OBSCD, 400' THIN SCT, 1500' THIN SCT, VIS 3 MI WITH FOG. NO RECORD WAS FND OF A PREFLT WX BRIEFING FOR THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PLT.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.