The pilot reported that he became disoriented during a day visual flight rules (VFR), cross-country flight.
After a nearly five-hour flight in search of his destination airport, he saw an airport and landed. After a brief conversation on the ground with witnesses, he refueled the Piper PA-28-180 and departed in search of his original destination airport.
Unable to locate his desired airport and five hours later as the day had turned to night, he spotted an airport near Silver City, New Mexico, and initiated an approach to the east. During the night VFR approach, the engine lost power, but the pilot switched fuel tanks and completed an engine restart inflight.
However, the airplane did not touch down on airport property. It landed outside of the airport’s southern perimeter fence, near Airport Road and the southeast airport access gate.
The airplane hit the airport’s perimeter fence and sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and the left wing. The pilot sustained minor injuries in the crash.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s loss of situational awareness and failure to touchdown on the runway, which resulted in a collision with the airport’s perimeter fence.
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This April 2021 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.
maybe look out the window once in a while??
As an old school instructor, I always taught DR Navigating as well as pilotage. In my day, we flew by compass and chart. I’m astounded, and agree this fellow needs some additional ground instruction as well as mandated dual with an instructor versed in the old Navigating techniques.
Uh?
I though this happened just a few years after the Wright brothers first flew but then read the report and saw it happened in 2021.
My little airplane has 4 GPS units if you count my phone! Even when I fly my ultralight I have one GPS (and if it dies I am sure I can find my way home)
I was once loitering on a local flight and heard someone declaring an emergency on 121.5. Their GPS had died and could not find their way back home. Mind you that this was in south Florida and if you fly East you can always find something recognizable. Eventually ATC convinced them to do just that and they found their way back home. Compass? I thought that was one unbelievable story but this one tops it 🙂
The Global Positioning System:
I got lost on my first cross country. The C-150 I was flying did not have a GPS and my instructor offered me a hand GPS to which i refused. I felt so confident I could find my way by just using a chart that I did not need the GPS. Flying over the everglades everything is so green that it’s hard to find a grass runway. In my flight plan I had a grass runway as a VFR way point. The destination airport was along the West Coast of FL, so when I got to the coast I knew it was either left or right up or down the coast. Luckily I turned up the coast and found the destination airport. Now I fly with Two GPS.
Not to be cruel but in the interest of overall GA safety this pilot should have license suspended pending some current instructional and actual dual flight training.
Yup, a ‘709 ride’ is in order. !
Can one imagine the intense bladder pressure felt during the last approach? It may have been a major contributing factor…lol
Two years later, that seat still isn’t dry yet.
Why not give ATC a call and ask for some vectors?
If this old guy couldn’t do basic navigation, do you think he had a chart with the frequency for Abq Ctr.?
His original destination was 98 nm N-NW , but he crashed at an airport 40 nm EAST of his departure airport.
It is fortunate that he didn’t wander another 25 nm south, and crash in Mexico. !!
I’ll mention again that this guy need some basic navigation instruction, or quit flying.!
Wow..!! This pilot needs some basic navigation instruction….pilotage, VOR nav, and maybe a tablet with a gps moving map. [ there is a VOR east of his destination that he could track outbound for 20 minutes. ]
Going for less than an hours flight and flying around for 5 hours. I’m glad he didn’t run out of fuel… and then flies for another 5 hrs….I’d be very tired and maybe question why I’m in the left seat.?