- Date
- October 27, 1991, 18:57 local (23:57 UTC)
- Place
- Groton, CT
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 2 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N14256Piper PA-23-250
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report April 27, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19911027048139A
- Case key
- 37101
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain the minimum descent altitude during the approach. A factor was pilot fatigue.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The instrument rated private pilot had flown in IMC conditions on two IFR flight plans throughout the day from miami, Florida to Groton, Connecticut. He had updated his destination and alternate weather while en route and knew of the continuing conditions. After reporting babet intersection and receiving clearance for the approach to land for runway 23, the pilot descended the airplane to approximately 680 feet MSL and engaged the autopilot. The airplane descended slowly below the minimum descent altitude and impacted a wooded area approximately 1.5 miles from the airport. The pilot was visually scanning out the airplane's window and did not note the descent before impact. He reported no failures to any airplane system or radios. The FAA coordinator found nothing unusual with the airplane and did state that the pilot reported being tired at the time of the approach. The minimum descent altitude was 660 feet.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N14256
- Reported as
- Piper PA-23-250
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 27-4818
- Airframe hours
- 3,707
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540-C4B5, 250 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Better Val-U, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Better Val-U, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 25, 1991 · 50 hours before
- Departed
- CRE · N. Myrtle Beach, SC
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- GON · Groton-New London, runway 23, 5,000 × 150 ft, asphalt
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 32
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 652 total · 245 in this make and model · 558 as pilot in command · 62 in the last 90 days · 21 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 230° at 7 knots
- Temperature
- 59 °F, dew point 59 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- GON, 2 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.