Lancair 320 accident near Manitowoc, WI
On October 25, 2023, a Lancair 320 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Manitowoc, WI. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- October 25, 2023
- Place
- Manitowoc, WI
- Aircraft
- Lancair 320 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 44.170°N, 87.693°W
- NTSB ID
- 20231026193308
Official records · CEN24FA024
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn October 25, 2023, at 1829 central daylight time, a Lancair 320 airplane, N320P, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Manitowoc, Wisconsin. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 personal flight. ADS-B data indicated that the accident flight originated from the Jesse Viertel Memorial Airport (VER), near Boonville, Missouri, about 1545. The airplane flew northeast in a straight line toward the Wisconsin Door County peninsula. The airplane then descended and turned toward the Ephraim/Gibraltar Airport (3D2), near Ephraim, Wisconsin. The airplane did not land at 3D2 and proceeded toward the south-southwest. According to the airport manager at the Manitowoc County Airport (MTW), near Manitowoc, Wisconsin, the airport’s pilot-controlled lighting system activated at 1825. ADS-B data indicated the airplane was about 15 miles north of MTW at this time. When the airplane was about 12 miles north of MTW, it turned to the south and aligned with runway 17 at MTW. The accident site was located about 2.5 miles north of the approach end of runway 17 at MTW. The final ADS-B target was recorded at 1829:29. ADS-B data recorded the airplane’s transponder code as 1200 for the entire flight, indicating that it was operating as a visual flight rules flight. During the final 1 minute and 30 seconds of the flight the airplane was descending at a rate of 900 ft/min. Shortly thereafter, the airplane impacted trees and came to rest submerged in a small lake, which resulted in sub
Probable cause
The pilot’s decision to continue the visual flight rules flight into instrument meteorological conditions and failure to maintain clearance from trees and terrain during an unapproved instrument approach. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s inadequate preflight weather planning.
More accidents in WI
- Douglas DC-9-14, Sep 6, 1985
- Beech 200, Nov 16, 1987
- Piper PA-28-140, Feb 3, 1991
- Piper PA-32R-300, Aug 19, 1990
- Cessna 421C, Jul 1, 2017
Browse: Wisconsin · Lancair aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
