Piper PA-34-200T accident near Port Huron, MI

On December 24, 2014, a Piper PA-34-200T (airplane) was involved in an accident near Port Huron, MI. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.

Date

December 24, 2014

Place

Port Huron, MI

Aircraft

Piper PA-34-200T · Airplane

Injuries

1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor

Damage

Destroyed

Position

42.970°N, 82.419°W

NTSB ID

20141227X53516

Official records · CEN15FA087

• Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation

Air traffic control records

• Summary of Air Traffic Control Communications: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
• Air Traffic Control Radar Plot by Lat and Long: Document (TXT), on ntsb.gov

NTSB summary

HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn December 24, 2014, at 1254 eastern standard time, a Piper PA-34-200T, N38884, impacted trees and terrain during a missed approach from an instrument landing system (ILS) approach to runway 4 at St Clair County International Airport (PHN), Port Huron, Michigan. The airplane was destroyed by impact forces. The private pilot sustained fatal injuries. The airplane was registered to GL Holdings LLC and was operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a business flight. Instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) prevailed at the time of the accident with weather below approach minimums. The flight was operating on an instrument flight rules flight plan and departed from Hanover County Municipal Airport (OFP), Richmond, Virginia, at 1025 destined to PHN. The pilot called Lockheed Martin Flight Service (LMFS) several times before the departure of the accident flight and received official weather briefings twice. The first call to LMFS occurred on December 23, 2014 at 1308 for a flight from OFP to PHN with a departure time of 1500. The pilot told the LFMS that he was trying to determine whether the weather at PHN was below minimums and his personal minimums. The LMFS briefer told the pilot that the Selfridge Air National Guard Base (MTC), Mount Clemens, Michigan terminal forecast (TAF) indicated a gradual change from 1600 to 1700: wind from 140 degrees at 9 knots, visibility about 3 statute (sm) miles due to light drizzle mist, broken ceiling of 600 feet mean sea level (msl), and an overcast ceiling of 1,000 feet msl up

Probable cause

The pilot’s decision to continue flight below the minimum descent altitude without visually acquiring the runway and his delayed and improperly executed missed approach procedure in instrument meteorological conditions.

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Browse: Michigan · Piper aircraft

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Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.