LAX01LA047

The airplane lost airspeed and altitude while sightseeing in a valley and made an emergency landing on a hillside in mountainous terrain. While looking at the valley below the airplane was caught in a severe downdraft from which the pilot was unable to recover. There were no discrepancies noted with the airframe or power plant by the pilot. He did note that when he added power there was not enough power available to compensate for the downdraft. The pilot stated that his preflight weather briefing indicated clear skies with visual flight rules recommended. He also stated that the airplane was caught in a downdraft on the lee side of mountainous terrain.

On November 29, 2000, at 1630 hours Hawaiian standard time, a Wsk-Pzl Warzawa-Okecie PZL-104 WILGA 80, N112B, impacted mountainous terrain in a remote area after experiencing a downdraft 8 miles southeast of Molokai airport, Kaunakakai, Hawaii. The airplane was operated by the pilot/owner under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91, and was substantially damaged. The certified flight instructor (CFI) received serious injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local area personal flight that departed the Honolulu International Airport, Honolulu, Hawaii, at 1535. A flight plan had not been filed. The flight was scheduled to terminate at the Honolulu airport.

The aviation surface weather report for the Molokai airport, located 8 miles southeast of the accident site, reported the weather at 1519 to be 10 miles visibility; winds from 040 degrees at 5 knots, with scattered cloud layers at 2,700 feet and 3,900 feet; temperature 75 degrees Fahrenheit; dew point 64 degrees Fahrenheit; and altimeter setting 30.00 inHg. Weather reported at 1554 was 10 miles visibility; winds from 020 degrees at 9 knots; temperature 75 degrees Fahrenheit; dew point 66 degrees Fahrenheit, with a scattered cloud layer at 3,900 feet; and altimeter setting 30.01 inHg.

The pilot notified family members and personnel from the Maui County fire department via cell phone that he had been involved in an airplane accident, and advised them of his location.

In the pilot's written statement to the Safety Board he indicated that after transitioning through Kaneohe Class D airspace he flew towards Molokai via Ilio point climbing to 3,000 feet. He requested clearance to pass over Molokai from west to east towards the south shore near Kamalo Valley. He flew towards the valley in a northerly direction. The pilot stated that he did a "few turns . . ." looking at the valley and then experienced a severe downdraft, from which he was unable to recover. He stated that it was if the airplane was a rock falling out of the sky. He made a turn towards the north; what he thought was the direction from which the downdraft was coming. He added full power and a notch of flaps to get more lift, but that was not enough to get him out of the valley. The pilot stated that he looked for a spot to land and made a forced landing on a hillside. The pilot noted no discrepancies with the engine.

The pilot reported that a turn in the opposite direction would have given him more airspeed, but would have resulted in a further loss of altitude.

A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector reviewed the airframe and engine logbooks with no discrepancies noted. The FAA inspector noted the accident site location was at 3,600 feet above ground level.