CHI99FA190

The aircraft impacted a 120 foot silo during a visual approach into Satanta Municipal Airport (1K9), Satanta Kansas. The elevation of the airport is 2,976 feet msl. Night instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The airport is not equipped with an approved instrument approach procedure. At 0025:08 radar data shows the aircraft with a transponder code of 4753 one mile northeast of 1K9. From 0028:01 to 0035:22, the squawk code was 1200. The last recorded radar position was at 0035:22, between 1K9 and the silo, at an altitude of 3,200 feet msl.

History of flight

On June 19, 1999, at 0036 central daylight time, a Cessna 182J, N2711F, piloted by an instrument rated private pilot, impacted a silo during a visual approach into the Satanta Municipal Airport (1K9), Satanta, Kansas. Night instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The 14 CFR Part 91 flight had cancelled a instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan during the approach. The pilot sustained fatal injuries. The personal flight departed Coffey County Airport (UKL), Burlington, Kansas, on June 18, 1999, at 2158, en route to 1K9.

A witness at UKL reported that the pilot hangered N2711F there [UKL]. The pilot would arrive on Monday's and leave on the weekends. He stated that the pilot always had the airplane "filled up" when he usually flew in on Mondays. He added that the pilot was usually in a rush to get home and "always pushed the limits coming and going".

A witness, to the weather conditions reported the following: "At about 0030 on the early morning of the 19th of June the air was getting heavy with moisture and visibility was starting to decrease in the Ulysses area. At 0042 ... We still had ground visibility but it looked like a 200' to 300' ceiling...at 0101 hours. The weather was Foggy with a visibility of 1/2 to 3/4 mile at the time I left Ulysses. I traveled back to Dodge City along K-144 Highway to U-56 Highway to Dodge City. The weather was foggy along my route of travel at times getting down to 1/8 to 1/4 visibility in the Haskell County area. As I got back into the Eastern Gray county area and the Dodge City area visibility had started to get better with probably 3/4 to a mile visibility ... at 0223." The witness further reported that he holds an airline transport pilot certificate with a multi-engine rating and a commercial pilot certificate with a single engine land instrument rating. The witness reported having a total flying time of 3,000 hours as pilot-in-command.

A witness reported hearing a "split second sound" and identified it as a aircraft engine "thrusting" followed by a crash. He further stated that he thought that the sound was from the trains in the area.

Personnel information

The pilot was 61 years old and the holder of a private pilot certificate with single engine land and instrument airplane ratings. He received a notice of disapproval of application for an instrument rating on March 22, 1995. He received a second notice of disapproval of application for an instrument rating on March 31, 1995. He received an instrument rating on May 23, 1997, with a total flight time of 730 hours and 63 hours of instrument time. He had accumulated a total flight time of 1,212 hours of which 111 hours were at night and 79 hours were in actual instrument conditions. The pilot received a biennial flight review in the accident airplane on May 25, 1999.

The pilot received a third class medical certificate on May 1, 1997 with a limitation, "Holder shall posses correcting glasses for near vision while exercising the privileges of his/her airman certificate". An application for a third class certificate on April 11, 1995 shows, within the Explanations section, "color vision waiver no. 20f27735". The pilot received a waiver of physical standards for defective color vision on February 19, 1959.

Aircraft information

The 1965 Cessna 182J was a normal category airplane which had accumulated a total airframe time of 3,388 hours. An annual inspection of the airplane was logged on November 15, 1998, at a total airframe time of 3,363 hours.

Meteorological information

At 0054, the Garden City automatic weather observing system, located approximately 32 nmi on a magnetic bearing of 017 degrees from the accident site, reported: wind from 120 degrees at 5 knots, 3 smi visibility in mist, an overcast sky at 300 feet agl, a temperature and dewpoint of 64 degree F and 63 degrees F; an altimeter setting of 30.04 inches of mercury.

Airport information

1K9's elevation is 2,976 feet msl and is served by runway 03-21 (3,250 feet by 40 feet, asphalt). It is equipped with nonstandard runway lighting and is not equipped with an approved instrument approach procedure.

Wreckage and impact information

The aircraft was found lying on the ground between a series of silos which were located approximately 3/4-1 nmi on a magnetic bearing of approximately 155 degrees from 1K9. The silos were approximately 120 feet agl. The height of antennas and structure above the 120 feet silos were 180 feet agl. The silo was equipped with red perimeter lighting at the 120 foot level. The wreckage path, located on top of the silo, had a magnetic heading of approximately 220 degrees beginning at an 8-foot section of the silo's perimeter fence and ending at an 8-foot high gallery located approximately 97 feet from the broken perimeter fence. There was a one foot long slash mark with downward deformation of a blue colored metal housing of the silo's aerator fan located along the wreckage path. The aircraft's nose wheel landing gear was found at the base of the silo's aerator fan.

The propeller was separated from the engine and displayed bending and twisting. A 4-inch tip of a propeller blade was found in the co-op's parking lot. The 4-inch tip was curled and exhibited blue colored smearing on its surface. There was a 45-degree torsional fracture at the propeller flange.

Flight control continuity was established. The right trailing edge flap actuator was found extended 1-1/16 inches which equates to approximately a 5-degree flap extension.

The transponder code (squawk code) was found to be 1200.

Three flashlights, which illuminated when they were turned on, were found with the main wreckage.

Medical and pathological information

An autopsy was conducted by Cimarron Pathology, P.A., Liberal, Kansas, on June 20, 1999.

Federal Aviation Toxicological test results were negative for all substances tested.

Test and research

Federal Aviation Regulation (FAR) 91.155(a) states: "Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section and 91.157, no person may operate an aircraft under VFR when the flight visibility is less, or at a distance from clouds that is less, than that prescribed for the corresponding altitude and class airspace in the following table". The table depicts the flight visibility and distance from clouds for class G airspace at 1,200 feet or less above the surface, at night, as 3 smi, and 500 feet below, 1,000 feet above, and 2,000 feet horizontal from clouds.

FAR 91.177(a), Minimum Altitudes for IFR Operations, states, "Operation of aircraft at minimum altitudes. Except when necessary for takeoff and landing, no person may operate and aircraft under IFR below ... an altitude of 1,000 feet above the highest obstacle within a horizontal distance of 4 nautical miles from the course to be flown."

The United States Air Force's Aerospace Physiology Student Workbook, AFI 11-403, states under the paragraph titled Perception/Reaction Time, "-is determined by specific physiological and perceptual limitations of what you can see and react to in a given time. Figure 9-5 lists the perception/reaction time for subjects in a laboratory environment. The times change for a variety of reasons, including type of aircraft, physical and physiological state of the crew members, mental state of the crew members, time of day and weather conditions". Figure 9-5 contains two columns as follows:

ACTION TIME(SECONDS) Detect and visualize 0.4

Recognize 1.0

Decide what to do 2.0

Direct muscle movement, 2.5 move controls and change flight path

Total time 5.9

From 0025:08 to 0027:42, radar data indicates the airplane tracked from a position that was one mile northeast of the airport, towards the west