# Incident 20251019020149I: Piper PA-28-161, Harrisburg, PA, October 19, 2025

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 19, 2025, 11:43 local time
- Place: Harrisburg, PA
- Airport: Capital City
- Damage: No damage
- Phase of flight: Landing: Approach
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 40.2171° N, 76.8514° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at CAPITAL CITY (CXY), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.2171&lon=-76.8514&mi=10
- Aircraft: N47675, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N47675) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-28-161 (registry code 7102803, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-28-161) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-320 series (registry code 41508, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA-28-161
- Reported engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 1,994 total, 1,900 in this make and model, 33 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20251019020149I

## Narrative

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

THE AIRMAN WAS ENROUTE FROM EASTON, MD (KESN) TO CAPITOL CITY AIRPORT (KCXY) ON AN INSTRUMENT FLIGHT RULES FLIGHT PLAN. THE AIRMAN WAS VECTORED FOR THE ILS 08 APPROACH AT KCXY. AT INITIAL INTERCEPT OF THE INBOUND APPROACH COURSE, THE AIRMAN INCORRECTLY TURNED OUTBOUND. ATC THEN CANCELED THE APPROACH CLEARANCE AND ISSUED NEW CLIMB AND HEADING INSTRUCTIONS, WHICH WERE READ BACK CORRECTLY BY THE AIRMAN. THE AIRMAN WAS GIVEN MULTIPLE INSTRUCTIONS TO FLY HEADING 170 WHICH HE READ BACK CORRECTLY, BUT CONTINUED TURNING IN A COMPLETE 360 DEGREE TURN. AFTER THE 360 TURN, ATC AGAIN INSTRUCTED THE AIRMAN TO FLY A 170 DEGREE HEADING WHICH THE AIRMAN ACCOMPLISHED. ATC AGAIN VECTORED THE AIRMAN TO THE ILS 08 FOR A SECOND ATTEMPT. THE AIRMAN WAS CLEARED FOR THE APPROACH.  ATC ASKED THE AIRMAN IF HE WAS INBOUND AND THE AIRMAN CONFIRMED THAT HE WAS INBOUND. THE AIRMAN THEN ASKED ATC "WHAT ALTITUDE  SHOULD I BE AT"'  ATC REPLIED TO "FOLLOW THE GLIDESLOPE". THE AIRMAN CONTINUED HIS CURRENT HEADING WHICH WAS TO THE RIGHT OF THE INBOUND COURSE. SEEING THIS, ATC CANCELED THE APPROACH CLEARANCE AND ISSUED A 180 HEADING. AS ATC WAS VECTORING THE AIRMAN FOR A THIRD APPROACH ATTEMPT, THE AIRMAN TURNED INBOUND AND DESCENDED WITHOUT APPROACH CLEARANCE. THE AIRMAN THEN FLEW IN ANOTHER 360 DEGREE TURN INSTEAD OF CONTINUING ON THE INBOUND COURSE. ATC QUESTIONED THE AIRMAN ABOUT HIS FLIGHT PATH AND THE AIRMAN STATED TO ATC "I AM IN TROUBLE AND MY GARMIN IS SCREWED UP". ATC INSTRUCTED THE AIRMAN TO FLY A 180 HEADING TO AGAIN VECTOR FOR THE ILS 08. ASSIGNED  A 180 HEADING THE AIRMAN AGAIN FLEW A LEFT 360 TURN BEFORE GETTING ESTABLISHED ON THE ASSIGNED 180 HEADING. ATC ASSIGNED HEADING VECTORS BACK TO INTERCEPT THE APPROACH COURSE AND  CLEARED THE AIRMAN FOR APPROACH. THE AIRMAN REPORTED ESTABLISHED AND ASKED FOR LOWER ALTITUDE. ATC REPLIED TO THE AIRMAN "FOLLOW THE GLIDESLOPE". THE AIRMAN FLEW THROUGH THE LOCALIZER COURSE, MADE SOME CORRECTION BUT REPORTED "HAVING TROUBLE". ATC ASSIGNED A CLIMB TO 3000' BUT THE AIRMAN CONTINUED TO DESCEND. ATC THEN ISSUED A LOW ALTITUDE ALERT MULTIPLE TIMES AND REPEATED THE CLIMB INSTRUCTIONS. THE AIRMAN REPORTED " WE ARE IN DEEP TROUBLE". ATC  ISSUED REPEATED INSTRUCTIONS TO LEVEL WINGS , STOP THE TURN AND CLIMB TO 3000'. AFTER THE AIRMAN BEGAN A CLIMB, ATC VECTORED THE AIRMAN TO THE EAST FOR BETTER WEATHER CONDITIONS. THE AIRMAN WAS NEXT TURNED SOUTH TOWARDS LANCASTER AIRPORT (KLNS) WHICH WAS REPORTING VFR WEATHER CONDITIONS. APPROACH CONTROL COORDINATED WITH KLNS TOWER FOR LANDING CLEARANCE DUE TO THE AIRMAN BEING UNABLE TO CHANGE FREQUENCIES. A LANDING CLEARANCE WAS GIVEN TO RUNWAY 13 AND THEN CHANGED TO RUNWAY 8 DUE TO THE AIRMAN LINING UP FOR THE INCORRECT RUNWAY. THE AIRMAN LANDED ON RUNWAY 8 AT KLNS WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT.

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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