Piper PA28 N43620

Summary

On 10 October 2009 at about 20:00 local time, a Piper PA28 registered N43620 was involved in an accident near Lebanon, Virginia, United States. 3 people were on board and one was seriously injured, 2 had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

10 October 2009 at 20:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Lebanon, Virginia, United States

Coordinates

36.9769, -81.7978

Aircraft

Piper PA28

Registration

N43620

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Cincinnati → Mocksville

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA10CA017

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot’s decision to continue flight under visual flight rules into known deteriorating weather conditions, which resulted in controlled flight into terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot stated that he was in cruise flight at 2,500 feet when he encountered low clouds and fog. He lost visual contact with the ground and initiated a climbing left turn. Seconds later, he impacted rising terrain which resulted in substantial damage to the wings, fuselage, and the empennage. Prior to the flight, the pilot obtained a weather briefing from a flight service station that forecasted overcast ceilings at 3,000 feet and 10 miles visibility near the route of flight with conditions improving throughout the day. The pilot stated that the weather at the time of the accident was approximately 5 miles visibility, with an overcast ceiling at 3,000 feet.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.