Piper PA-28R-180 N11ML accident near Tifton, Georgia

Probable cause

The noninstrument-rated pilot’s improper decision to continue visual flight rules flight into known instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in spatial disorientation and a loss of airplane control.

NTSB analysis

About 2 hours into the 3-hour flight, an air traffic controller advised the noninstrument-rated pilot of an area of heavy and moderate precipitation extending from the airplane's 10- to 2-o'clock positions and 14 miles ahead. The pilot acknowledged the information and stated that he was going to try to fly around it. No further communications were received from the accident pilot. Radar data were consistent with a right, descending spiral to the ground in an area of very light precipitation. Examination of the wreckage did not reveal any preimpact mechanical malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot had accumulated 163 total flight hours, 1.7 hours of which were logged as simulated instrument experience. He had no documented actual instrument experience. No evidence was found indicating that the plot obtained a weather briefing before the flight.

Although toxicological testing revealed low levels of ethanol in the kidney and liver, the levels may have been from postmortem production, and the absence of vitreous, blood, or urine samples limited the interpretation. Similarly, although diphenhydramine, a sedating antihistamine, was present in the liver and muscle, without appropriate specimens, the investigation could not determine if it was impairing at the time of the accident. Given the presence of instrument meteorological conditions, including both degraded visibility and precipitation, and the pilot's lack of an instrument rating, the pilot likely experienced spatial disorientation. Further, the circumstances of the accident, including the high descent rate over a confined area and the spiral descent are consistent with the presence of spatial disorientation.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA14FA002 for the full record.