Piper PA 28-180 N57WV

Summary

On 5 November 2015 at about 04:55 local time, a Piper PA 28-180 registered N57WV was involved in an accident near Cornelia, Georgia, United States. 3 people were on board and 3 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

5 November 2015 at 04:55

Classification

Accident

Location

Cornelia, Georgia, United States

Nearest airport

Habersham County Airport (AJR)

Coordinates

34.5028, -83.5589

Aircraft

Piper PA 28-180

Registration

N57WV

Category

Airplane

Year built

1968

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Hazlehurst → Cornelia

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

ERA16FA032

3 people died.

The pilot's decision to initiate the flight into known adverse weather conditions, which resulted in his spatial disorientation and loss of airplane control.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The private pilot was conducting a visual flight rules (VFR) personal cross-country flight at night with two passengers on board. The pilot landed the airplane along his route to refuel. The airport manager reported that the airport's automated weather observation system was reporting 300 to 400 ft overcast ceilings. Further, one of the passengers sent a text message to someone waiting at their destination airport stating that they had to circle around the intermediary airport a couple of times to find a runway because it was "awful cloudy" and there was a "low ceiling." After refueling, the pilot departed despite the instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) that prevailed at both the intermediary airport and the destination airport. Although the pilot was instrument-rated, there was no evidence that he maintained his currency. Further, the pilot did not file and instrument flight rules flight plan. Radar data revealed that, as the airplane crossed over the destination airport, it began a left turn before disappearing from radar. Residents who lived near the airport reported hearing a "whirling" noise, followed by a loud crash. They stated that, when they went outside to see what happened, there was heavy fog and mist. At no time during the flight was the pilot communicating with air traffic control or receiving radar services. The wreckage was located about 0.25 mile from the destination airport. Forward-to-aft crushing signatures to the wreckage, damage to adjacent trees, and the lack of a linear wreckage debris path was consistent with a near-vertical, nose-low attitude at impact. An examination of the airframe and engine did not reveal any evidence of a preimpact anomaly or malfunction that would have precluded normal operation. The conditions that existed during the flight, including dark night lighting conditions, low ceilings, and restricted visibility, were conducive to the development of spatial disorientation. Further, the airplane's near-vertical descent was consistent with the pilot's loss of control due to spatial disorientation. The pilot's decision to initiate the VFR flight into known IMC directly led to the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.