Piper PA-28R-180 N4541J

Summary

On 27 November 2000 at about 22:50 local time, a Piper PA-28R-180 registered N4541J was involved in an accident near Danville, Illinois, United States. 4 people were on board and 4 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

27 November 2000 at 22:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Danville, Illinois, United States

Nearest airport

Vermillion County Airport (DNV)

Coordinates

40.1397, -87.6090

Aircraft

Piper PA-28R-180

Registration

N4541J

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Mount Pleasant → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

CHI01FA043

4 people died.

The pilot's failure to maintain altitude/clearance during the instrument approach. Factors were the low ceilings, the pilot's failure to maintain proper alignment and glidepath during the approach, his lack of recent instrument experience, and his failure to perform the missed approach.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane was destroyed when it impacted the ground about 6 miles from the airport while on an ILS approach. The pilot was instrument rated. No logbook entry was found to indicate that the holding procedures requirements listed in FAR 61.57 (c) were performed. In addition, the pilot had only logged 1.3 hours of simulated instrument flight time and 0.9 hours of actual instrument flight time in the previous 6 months. No preexisting anomalies were found with respect to the accident airplane. Reported weather at the time of the accident was 500 foot overcast with 5 miles of visibility. Radar data along with voice transcripts show that the aircraft was given a right turn to a 180-degree heading to intercept the ILS 21 approach. The data shows that the aircraft turned left prior to intercepting the localizer course, and then proceeded through the localizer course before commencing a right turn to intercept the 209-degree approach bearing. The data indicates that when the aircraft was about 9.6 nautical miles from the localizer antenna, it was about 0.7 miles left of the localizer course. The aircraft altitude returns from the radar data indicate that the aircraft remained below the 3-degree glide slope path during the approach. The last radar return shows that the aircraft was about 400-feet below the standard 3-degree glide slope. The aircraft wreckage was located about 0.3 nautical miles and 196 degrees from the ILS outer marker antenna

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.