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| Date: | Saturday 22 January 1994 |
| Time: | 21:05 LT |
| Type: |  Piper PA-28-181 |
| Owner/operator: | Northstar Aviation, Inc. |
| Registration: | N4510N |
| MSN: | 28-8090035 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 3837 hours |
| Engine model: | Lycoming O-360-A4M |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 4 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Waseca, MN -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Rochester, MN (KRST) |
| Mankato, MN (KMKT) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PILOT GOT A WX BRIEFING AT ABOUT 1600 CST FROM THE MINNESOTA WX ADVISORY SERVICE & DEPARTED MANKATO ON A FLIGHT TO ROCHESTER. EN ROUTE, HE HAD A RADIO PROBLEM, BUT RECEIVED LIGHT SIGNALS FROM TOWER FOR CLEARANCE TO LAND. HE ARRANGED FOR LIGHT SIGNALS TO TAKEOFF & DEPARTED IN CLEAR WEATHER AT ABOUT 1810 ON A NIGHT FLIGHT BACK TO MANKATO. BY THAT TIME, MANKATO WX WAS 900' TO 1100' BROKEN WITH DECREASING VISIBILITY. BEFORE REACHING MANKATO, THE PLANE REVERSED COURSE & CRASHED IN A SNOW COVERED FIELD (1-1/4 MI NW OF WASECA AIRPORT, HDG 100 DEG, ELEV 1020'). RADAR DATA SHOWED IT HAD MANEUVERED BETWEEN 2000' & 5300' BEFORE DESCENDING BELOW RADAR COVERAGE AT 2200'. NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE WAS FOUND. LOCAL RESIDENTS SAID THE WEATHER CHANGED ABRUPTLY BETWEEN 1830 & 1900, WHEN A DENSE FOG DEVELOPED. THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED AT ABOUT 1905. LOGBOOK RECORDS SHOWED THE PILOT HAD 117 HOURS TOTAL FLIGHT TIME, INCLUDING 2 HRS SIMULATED INSTRUMENT TIME. FOG WAS NOT FORECAST UNTIL AN AMENDED FORECAST WAS ISSUED AT ABOUT 1945.
Probable Cause: CONTINUED VFR FLIGHT BY THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PILOT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC), AND HIS FAILURE TO MAINTAIN SUFFICIENT ALTITUDE (OR CLEARANCE) ABOVE THE GROUND. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: AN INACCURATE WEATHER FORECAST BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE, OPERATION OF THE AIRCRAFT BY THE PILOT WITH A KNOWN DEFICIENCY IN EQUIPMENT (RADIO), DARKNESS, THE ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS, THE PILOT'S PROBABLE SPATIAL DISORIENTATION, AND HIS LACK OF INSTRUMENT EXPERIENCE.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB CHI94FA067
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 24-Oct-2008 10:30 | ASN archive | Added |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:22 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency, ] |
| 10-Apr-2024 09:08 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Operator, Other fatalities, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category, Accident report, ] |
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