Piper PA 28-181 N6780F

Summary

On 1 December 2013 at about 00:40 local time, a Piper PA 28-181 registered N6780F, operated by Scheflo Steven M, was involved in an accident near Rock Lake, North Dakota, United States. 3 people were on board and 3 were seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

1 December 2013 at 00:40

Classification

Accident

Location

Rock Lake, North Dakota, United States

Coordinates

48.5200, -99.1200

Aircraft

Piper PA 28-181

Registration

N6780F

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Scheflo Steven M

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Inter. Falls → Bottineau

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

IMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

CEN14LA074

3 people were seriously injured.

The noninstrument-rated pilot’s failure to obtain weather briefings immediately before and during the flight and his continued flight into icing conditions, which resulted in the airplane’s loss of performance and the subsequent controlled descent into trees and terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The noninstrument-rated private pilot obtained a computerized weather briefing about 9 hours before he departed on a night cross-country flight. At that time, neither ice nor low visibility conditions were forecast along his intended flight route. The pilot did not obtain any additional weather information before takeoff or while en route. Weather conditions at the time of departure were marginal visual meteorological conditions, and instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) were forecast along the route of flight. The weather conditions were also conducive to the accumulation of structural icing. The pilot reported that, about 2 hours into the flight, the airplane entered IMC. He stated that he looked out at the wing and saw that "frost" had started to build up. The airplane was unable to maintain altitude, so the pilot added power and focused on maintaining level flight at a safe airspeed as the airplane continued to descend until it impacted trees and the ground. The airplane came to rest on its left side in an ice-covered field and sustained substantial damage to both wings, all three landing gear, and the right horizontal stabilizer.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.