# Accident 20240726015569A: Pilatus Aircraft Ltd PC-12/47E, Recluse, WY, July 26, 2024

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 26, 2024, 13:04 local time
- Place: Recluse, WY
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 44.8773° N, 105.5892° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.8773&lon=-105.5892&mi=10
- Aircraft: N357HE, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N357HE) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Pilatus PC-12/47E (registry code 7090553, https://openairdocs.org/model/pilatus-pc-12-47e) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-67P (registry code 52292, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-canada-pt6a-67p) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PILATUS AIRCRAFT LTD PC-12/47E
- Reported engine: P&W CANADA PT6A-67P
- People aboard: 7
- Fatal injuries: 7
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 2,200 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB WPR24FA257](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR24FA257) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20240726015569A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

*NOTE- SELECTION OF AUTO-PILOT AS PRIMARY TECHNICAL FACTOR IS BASED SOLELY ON PILOTS RADIO TRANSMISSIONS MADE TO ATC PRIOR TO ATC LOSING RADIO AND RADAR CONTACT WITH AIRCRAFT.   NO EVIDENCE OF ANY MECHANICAL FAILURES OR MALFUNCTIONS RELATED TO THE AUTO-PILOT SYSTEM, COMPONENTS, OR RELATED CONTROL SURFACES HAVE BEEN FOUND DURING THE EXAMINATION OF THE AIRCRAFT OR THE SUBSEQUENT TESTING OF THE REMOVED AUTO PILOT COMPONENTS AT THE TIME OF THIS REPORT.

ON JULY 26, 2024, ABOUT 1304 MOUNTAIN DAYLIGHT TIME, A PILATUS PC-12/47E WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT NEAR RECLUSE, WYOMING.  THE PILOT AND SIX PASSENGERS WERE FATALLY INJURED.  THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED NEBRASKA CITY MUNICIPAL AIRPORT, NEBRASKA CITY, NEBRASKA, AROUND 1200, WITH AN INTENDED DESTINATION OF BILLINGS LOGAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (BIL), BILLINGS, MONTANA.  DURING THE LAST PORTION OF THE FLIGHT, THE PILOT REPORTED THE LOSS OF THE AUTOPILOT AND DECLARED AN EMERGENCY WITH THE SALT LAKE CITY AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL CENTER. THE CONTROLLER ASKED THE PILOT WHERE HE WOULD LIKE TO LAND BUT RECEIVED NO INITIAL RESPONSE. THE PILOT THEN RESPONDED THAT HE WAS TRYING TO GET CONTROL OF THE AIRPLANE TO WHICH THE CONTROLLER ADVISED THE PILOT TO LET THEM KNOW IF HE REQUIRED ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE. THE CONTROLLER DIDN'T RECEIVE ANY RESPONSE AND LOST RADAR CONTACT SHORTLY AFTER. PERSONNEL FROM CAMPBELL COUNTY SHERIFFS' DEPARTMENT LOCATED THE CRASH SITE ABOUT 12 MILES NORTHEAST OF RECLUSE, WYOMING.   EXAMINATION OF THE ACCIDENT SITE REVEALED THAT THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED TERRAIN IN A STEEP NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE AND SLIGHTLY INVERTED.  SMALL FRAGMENTS OF THE AIRPLANE WERE SCATTERED THROUGHOUT AN APPROXIMATE 300 FT RADIUS FROM THE MAIN WRECKAGE, WITH THE MAJOR PORTION OF THE WRECKAGE IMBEDDED IN THE GROUND.  A POST-CRASH FIRE COVERING APPROXIMATELY 40 ACRES SURROUNDED THE CRASH SITE. TWO LARGE SECTIONS OF THE LEFT WING, ALONG WITH SMALLER FRAGMENTS WERE LOCATED ALONG A DEBRIS FIELD THAT EXTENDED .8 MILES FROM THE MAIN WRECKAGE ON A MAGNETIC HEADING OF 300 DEGREES.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB WPR24FA257](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR24FA257), Jul 26, 2024: Pilatus PC-12/47E (N357HE), Recluse, WY, destroyed, 7 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s loss of control due to spatial disorientation while operating in instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in an in-flight breakup. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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