THIEF RIVER FLS, MN, USA
N8290Y
PIPER PA-30
DURING ARRIVAL, THE PLT WAS ADZD THAT THE 1745 CST WX WAS 500' BKN, 1000' OVC, VIS 3-1/2 MI WITH FOG. HE MADE AN ILS RWY 31 APCH, BUT AT 1928 CST, HE RPRTD A MISSED APCH. HE STATED THAT HE HAD SEEN 'THE LIGHTS' & REQUESTED ANOTHER APCH. THE ACFT WAS VECTORED FOR A 2ND ILS. WHEN IT WAS ABOUT 5 MI FROM THE OUTER MARKER (FAF), THE PLT WAS CLRD FOR THE APCH & TO CHANGE TO AN ADZY FREQ. HOWEVER, ABOUT 3 MI SE OF THE FAF, THE ACFT FLEW INTO LEVEL TERRAIN, WHILE STILL ON A WESTERLY HDG. MIN DSCNT ALT (MDA) FOR THIS SEGMENT OF THE APCH WAS 2700' MSL; THE ARPT ELEV WAS 1116'). NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION OF THE AIRFRAME OR ENG WAS FOUND. THE 1945 CST WX AT THE ARPT HAD DETERIORATED TO 200' OVC & 1/4 MI VIS WITH FOG.
IMPROPER IFR PROCEDURE OF THE PILOT, WHILE INTERCEPTING THE ILS LOCALIZER, BY NOT MAINTIANING THE MINIMUM DESCENT ALTITUDE (MDA) FOR THAT SEGMENT OF THE APPROACH.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
Aviation Accidents App
In-Depth Access to Aviation Accident Reports
