14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Tuesday, October 09, 2012 in Laramie Peak, WY
Probable Cause Approval Date: 05/08/2014
Aircraft: PIPER PA-32R-301T, registration: N110UM
Injuries: 4 Fatal.
NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
The noninstrument-rated pilot departed on a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-county flight with a planned intermediate fuel stop. Following the intermediate fuel stop, the pilot continued the flight toward his intended destination. Recorded radar data showed the airplane in level flight at 8,500 feet mean sea level (msl) for about 12 minutes followed by a slow climb. The last recorded radar target was located about 1/4 mile from the accident site at an altitude of about 9,700 feet msl. Examination of the accident site revealed that the airplane collided with rising mountainous terrain just below the peak of a ridgeline. Weather conditions at the departure and destination airports were VFR; however, AIRMETs for instrument meteorological conditions (IMC), mountain obscuration, and moderate icing conditions were in effect throughout the area around the time of the accident. It is likely that the pilot continued visual flight into IMC, which resulted in his failure to maintain sufficient clearance from rising terrain. It could not be determined if the pilot obtained a weather briefing for the flight. A postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
The noninstrument-rated pilot’s continued visual flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in his failure to maintain sufficient clearance from rising terrain.
On October 9, 2012, about 1344 mountain daylight time (MDT), a Piper PA-32R-301T Saratoga II, N110UM, was destroyed when it collided with mountainous terrain near the summit of Laramie Peak, about 51 miles southeast of Casper, Wyoming. The non-instrument rated private pilot and 3 passengers were fatally injured. The airplane was registered to one of the passengers and operated by the pilot as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country flight under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the departure and destination airports. No flight plan was filed for the flight that originated from Marshall, Texas (KASL) about 0820 central daylight time. The pilot's planned destination was Casper, Wyoming, with an intermediate fuel stop in Dodge City, Kansas. The flight departed Dodge City about 1130 central daylight time (CDT).
On October 9, family members alerted the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that the pilot was overdue at his planned destination; that evening an alert notice (ALNOT) for the missing airplane was issued. On October 11, search and rescue personnel discovered the wreckage near the summit of Laramie Peak.
The wreckage was located on the southeast (upslope) side of the Laramie Peak just below the summit.
PERSONNEL INFORMATION
A review of FAA airman records revealed that the pilot, age 21, was issued a private pilot certificate June 22, 2012 with an airplane single engine land rating. The pilot did not hold an instrument rating. The records showed that the pilot applied for the private pilot certification on June 22, 2012; at that time he reported 57.4 total flying hours that included 36.9 hours of dual instruction and approximately 19 solo hours. He reported a total of 3.8 hours instrument flying experience.
The pilot held an FAA third-class airman medical certificate that was issued on November 23, 2010; the medical certificate carried no limitations or restrictions.
A passenger, believed to be seated in the right front seat of the airplane, had considerable flight experience; however, his Airline Transport Pilot Certificate, Certified Flight Instructor Certificate and Ground Instructor Certificate were revoked by the FAA Administrator, via an emergency order of revocation, on July 28, 2008.
AIRCRAFT INFORMATION
The airplane was a single-engine 2005 model Piper PA-32R-301T, 6-place, low-wing configuration with retractable landing gear. It was powered by a Lycoming TIO-540-AH1A, 300 horsepower engine and equipped with an adjustable-pitch propeller. The airplane was equipped with dual cockpit flight controls, an S-TEC autopilot, Avidyne Entegra Integrated Flight Deck, Primary and Multifunction Flight Displays (PFD, MFD), and dual Garmin GNS 430 GPS navigation transceivers.
Examination of the airplane's maintenance records revealed that its most recent annual inspection was completed on July 27, 2012, at 653.3 hours airframe total time.
Fueling records showed that the airplane was last refueled in Dodge City, Kansas on November 9, 2012 at 1125 CDT, with the addition of 61.9 gallons of AVGAS.
METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION
Weather in the area during the timeframe of the accident included low clouds and mountain obscuration. An AIRMET (Airman's Meteorological Information) for mountain obscuration was issued by the National Weather Service (NWS) for the area and timeframe of the accident.
The NWS Surface Analysis Chart for 1200 on October 9 depicted a low pressure system over southeastern Wyoming that extended from Colorado, Southern Wyoming and into Idaho, with a high pressure system over Montana. The station model for Casper, Wyoming, depicted a wind from the northeast at 5 knots, overcast clouds with a temperature of 3 degrees Celsius (C) and a dew point minus 2 degrees C.
A review of Remote Automated Weather (RAWs) sites operated by the Bureau of Land Management indicated that the Esterbrook, Wyoming, RAWs, at an elevation of 6,597 feet and approximately 10 miles north of the accident site, reported a northerly wind at 5 knots, a temperature of minus 1 degree C, minus 2 degrees C, and a relative humidity of 97 percent. No ceilometer or visibility information was available from the site; however, based on the temperature-dew point spread (assuming a standard lapse rate) would suggest cloud heights about 500 feet above the station.
In-Flight Weather Advisories
An AIRMET Sierra for instrument meteorological conditions, mountain obscuration with areas of clouds and mist was issued with conditions expected to end between 1200 and 1500. An AIRMET Zulu for occasional moderate icing conditions was also valid between 8,000 and 18,000 feet.
Casper/Natrona County International Airport (KCPR) was one of the closest official weather reporting location to the accident site, located 59 miles northwest at an elevation of 5,350 feet.
At 1353 (1953Z), KCPR reported wind from 100 degrees at 4 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, ceiling broken at 1,900 feet, overcast clouds at 9,000 feet, temperature 4 degrees C, dew point -2 degrees C, altimeter 30.14 inches of mercury.
It was not determined if the pilot obtained a weather briefing for the flight.
WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION
The airplane impacted mountainous terrain near the summit of Laramie Peak about 51 miles southeast of Casper, Wyoming. Access to the wreckage was limited to search and rescue (SAR) personnel due to terrain and weather conditions. The wreckage was located on the southeast (upslope) side of the Laramie Peak at an elevation of about 9,750 feet. SAR personnel reported that the airplane impacted steep terrain and a majority of the wreckage was consumed by postcrash fire. SAR personnel reported that all major structural components of the airplane were present at the accident site.
The wreckage was later recovered to a hangar facility in Greely, Colorado. Representatives from the National Transportation Safety Board, FAA, Piper, Lycoming Engines and Avidyne examined the wreckage at the hangar facility on February 13, 2013. The wreckage sustained extensive ground impact and postcrash fire damage and was destroyed. Examination of the recovered airframe, engine and system components revealed no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunction that would have precluded normal operation.
Additional examination information can be found in the wreckage examination report with accompanying pictures located in the public docket for this accident case file.
MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION
An autopsy was performed on the pilot on October 13, 2012, by Allen Forensic Pathology Consultant, Loveland, Colorado, at the request of the Albany County, Wyoming, Coroner's Office.
The FAA's Civil Aerospace Medical Institute performed forensic toxicology on specimens from the pilot with negative results for drugs and alcohol.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Radar data obtained from the FAA Technical Center in Atlantic City, NJ, showed the airplane level at 10,400 feet from 1300 until 1320, and then began a descent to 8,500 feet mean sea level (msl). The aircraft remained about 8,500 feet from 1327 until 1339, and then began a slow climb which continued until the collision with terrain. At 1341, the aircraft made a slight right turn. The last observed target on the accident aircraft was recorded at 1344 approximately one-quarter mile from the reported crash site about 9,700 feet msl.
Additional radar information can be found in the radar study located in the public docket for this accident case file.
Click here for a link to a Facebook page setup by one of the family members of the missing men.
http://registry.faa.gov/N110UM
http://www.classg.com
NTSB Identification: WPR13FA008
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Tuesday, October 09, 2012 in Laramie Peak, WY
Aircraft: PIPER PA-32R-301T, registration: N110UM
Injuries: 4 Fatal.
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
On October 9, 2012, about 1344 mountain daylight time, a Piper PA-32R-301T Saratoga II, N110UM, collided with mountainous terrain near the summit of Laramie Peak about 51 miles southeast of Casper, Wyoming. The private pilot and 3 passengers were fatally injured. The airplane was registered to one of the passengers and operated by the pilot as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country flight under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the departure and destination airports. No flight plan was filed for the flight that originated from Marshall, Texas (KASL) about 0820 central daylight time. The pilot’s planned destination was Casper, Wyoming, with an intermediate fuel stop in Dodge City, Kansas. The pilot departed Dodge City about 1130 CDT.
On October 9, family members alerted the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that the pilot was overdue at his planned destination; that evening an alert notice (ALNOT) for the missing airplane was issued. On October 11, search and rescue personnel discovered the wreckage about 150 feet below the summit of Laramie Peak.
The wreckage was located on the southeast (upslope) side of the Laramie Peak about 150 feet below the summit. The summit of Laramie Peak is the highest obstruction between the wreckage and the destination airport.
Weather in the area during the timeframe of the accident included low clouds and mountain obscuration. An AIRMET (Airman’s Meteorological Information) for mountain obscuration was issued by the National Weather Service (NWS) for the area and timeframe of the accident.
IDENTIFICATION
Regis#: 110UM Make/Model: PA32 Description: PA-32 Saratoga, Turbo
Date: 10/09/2012 Time: 1925
Event Type: Accident Highest Injury: None Mid Air: N Missing: N
Damage: Substantial
LOCATION
City: CASPER State: WY Country: US
DESCRIPTION
AIRCRAFT CRASHED UNDER UNKNOWN CIRCUMSTANCES. CASPER, WY
INJURY DATA Total Fatal: 0
# Crew: 0 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk: 1
# Pass: 0 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk: 3
# Grnd: Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
OTHER DATA
Activity: Unknown Phase: Unknown Operation: OTHER
FAA FSDO: CASPER, WY (NM04) Entry date: 10/12/2012
Piper PA-32R-301T Saratoga II TC, N110UM
Source: ClassG.com website
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - Albany County Undersheriff Rob DeBree says crews plan to recover the wreckage Friday of a plane that was found in pieces on the south face of Laramie Peak.
Searchers in southeast Wyoming found the wreckage on Thursday after the plane failed to arrive at the Casper, Wyo., airport. There were no survivors. Their names weren't immediately released.
The search for the Piper PA-32 single-engine plane was led by the Wyoming Civil Air Patrol, a U.S. Air Force helicopter and ground crews.
The plane had been scheduled to land Tuesday evening at the Casper airport after taking off from Marshall, Texas, and stopping for fuel in Dodge City, Kan.
HARRISON CO., TX (KSLA) - The wreckage of an East Texas airplane that has been missing since Tuesday night has been found, and there are no survivors, authorities have confirmed.
The wreckage was spotted at 7:02 p.m. CDT sitting on a rocky ledge on the south face of Wyoming's Laramie Peak, which is about 9,800 feet above sea level, says Albany County Sheriff's Office Under sheriff Rob DeBree.
Authorities had been searching for a 2005 Piper-PA-32 that took off from the Harrison County Airport bound for Casper, Wyoming, but did not arrive as planned.
A recovery team will be sent in early Friday morning, when a helicopter will lower to the ledge so that team members can reach the remains, DeBrees says.
The search crew was led by Albany County Sheriff's Office members, who were aided by U.S. Air Force aircraft, DeBree says.
http://www.ksla.com
Billy Gee, owner of Bayou Aviation Inc. and operator of a flight school located at the county airport.
Maverick Cayce, a pilot and employee at the flight school.
Chuck Ford, owner of CW Ford Rentals in Marshall.
James Morgan.
CHEYENNE, Wyoming (AP) — More air and ground searchers are combing a rugged mountain area in southeast Wyoming for a single-engine plane carrying four people from Texas.
Albany County Undersheriff Rob DeBree says a United States Air Force helicopter is helping the search from the air and the ground search team has been bolstered to about 40 people.
The Wyoming Civil Air Patrol now has two planes in the search, which is focusing on Laramie Peak area about 60 miles southeast of Casper.
The Piper PA-32 aircraft was reported missing after it failed to land as scheduled Tuesday evening at Casper/Natrona County International Airport. It took off from Harrison County Airport in Marshall, Texas.
MARSHALL — Family members of four area men in an airplane missing since Tuesday held out hope late Wednesday that the men would be found alive after a full day of searching failed to locate the aircraft in southeast Wyoming.
Though the ground and air search was suspended as darkness fell over the mountainous region, a Wyoming National Guard helicopter was beginning the first of two sorties into the search area about 10 p.m. central time.
The missing plane was carrying Billy Gee, owner of Bayou Aviation Inc. and operator of a flight school at Harrison County Airport; Maverick Cayce, a pilot and employee at the flight school; Chuck Ford, owner of CW Ford Rentals in Marshall; and James Morgan.
“We’re just hoping for them to find him alive,” said Cayce’s aunt, Missy Delong.
She was among a group of family members and friends gathered Wednesday at Bayou Aviation’s hangar for moral support and to keep each other abreast of updates from loved ones, including Gee’s wife and Cayce’s mother, who were flown to Wyoming to join the search.
“Everything we’re getting is second, third-hand (information) for the most part,” said Steve Ford, Chuck Ford’s brother.
The organized search began Wednesday morning for the missing Piper PA-32, which departed Harrison County Airport on Tuesday morning en route to Casper, Wyo. The plane had been reported missing Tuesday night, but it was then too dark to conduct a search.
Allen Kenitzer, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration’s Northwest Mountain Region, said the single-engine aircraft’s last known position was about 60 miles southeast of Casper. No flight plan had been filed for the trip; they are not required for private flights.
Lynn Lomax, a friend of Gee’s, said the last family and friends heard from Gee was when the plane stopped to refuel in Dodge City, Kan.
“We’re just waiting to get some kind of news,” she said.
Steve and Marcus Ford said their brother was going to Wyoming on business. Alain Gee said his 65-year-old brother and Cayce were flying the two others north to scout a construction site.
Alain Gee said he and his brother, both Kilgore natives, grew up flying with their pilot father, also named Bill.
“We always had a plane,” he said. “When I would get out of school, other kids would go ride bikes, and I was able to get in a plane and ride with my dad.”
Billy Gee became a commercial pilot, spending much of his career transporting cargo.
“He’s delivered anything from military troops to Walt Disney film crews,” Alain Gee said. “He is a person raised in a plane by my dad.”
He said Cayce, 21, of Longview, is his brother’s protege.
“My brother taught him a lot about airplanes and working on them,” Alain Gee said.
Major Jeanne Stone-Hunter, spokeswoman for the Wyoming Civil Air Patrol, said the Albany County Sheriff’s Office provided two ground teams for the search. She said her agency was dispatched by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center to conduct an aerial search using two fixed-wing aircraft.
Stone-Hunter said a visual aerial search was attempted Tuesday night with one aircraft, but it was too dark.
“They did an electronic search, hoping to find an electronic location transmitter, but got nothing,” she said.
While the daylight search relied on visual identification, the National Guard helicopter was using forward-looking radar in the overnight darkness.
The visual ground and air search was to resume this morning.
“We’ll continue the search until the aircraft is found,” Stone-Hunter said.
— News-Journal
Crews are on the ground and in the air searching for four East Texans after a plane went down in Wyoming.
The single-engine aircraft left Tuesday morning from the Harrison County Airport.
Major Jeanne Stone-Hunter with the Wyoming Civil Air Patrol said officials learned Monday night that the plane was overdue to its Casper, Wyo., destination.
According to a Federal Aviation Administration official, the search is localized about 60 miles southeast of Casper.
According to friends of the occupants, some family members joined in the search today after arriving in Wyoming by private plane.
“I heard the families are there now,” said Lynn Lomax.
The plane was piloted by Billy Gee, owner of Bayou Aviation and operator of a flight school located at the county airport.
According to postings on Facebook requesting prayer, passengers on the plane included Maverick Cayce, Chuck Ford and James Morgan, who are all from the Marshall and Longview areas.
The Air Force Rescue Coordination Center performed a search that night before calling the Civil Air Patrol to do an aerial search, according to Stone-Hunter.
Stone-Hunter said the search crew was looking for electronic location transmitted, but they failed to receive a transmission.
Nightfall forced the CAP to end their search. They sent another crew up after sunrise this morning searching for the Piper PA-32 plane, Stone-Hunter said. The Albany County Sheriff’s Department also has two crews on the ground searching in the area.
“As long as we’ve got air crews that are fresh to fly, we’ll just keep going,” Stone-Hunter said.
Abby Stevens, manager of Harrison County Airport, said the pilot and one of the passengers are at the airport every day.
“The FAA and military are looking for them,” she said, noting the plane flew out of the county airport before 11 a.m. on Tuesday. “The search is still ongoing.”
HARRISON COUNTY, TX (KSLA/KLTV) - The search for a Marshall, TX businessman continues after the plane he was flying to Wyoming went missing.
Management with CW Ford Rentals in Marshall said the company's owner, Chuck Ford, was one of four people on the plane heading to Casper, Wyoming. Ford also owns the plane, a Piper-PA-32. The plane took off from the Harrison County Airport Tuesday, and should have landed in Casper on
Tuesday night. Since it was a private and not a commercial flight, the Federal Aviation administration says the pilot was not required to file a flight plan.
According to the FAA, the last known position of the aircraft was about 60 miles southeast of Casper.
Converse County, Wyoming Sheriff Clint Becker says the Civil Air Patrol were searching an area primarily over the Medicine Bow National Forest. That's southeast of Casper, Wyoming where Converse, Platte and Albany Counties come together.
Platte County Sheriff Steve Keigley says they got a call around 11:30 Tuesday night from Casper Police with coordinates from a cell phone 'ping' from a phone believed to belong to one of those on the plane, but a search of the rural area where the 'ping' came from turned up nothing.
Officials have added that they will not label the plane as "downed" or "crashed", but simply "overdue."
http://www.marshallnewsmessenger.com
http://www.news-journal.com
http://www.kltv.com
http://kowb1290.com
http://lubbockonline.com
http://www.ksla.com
October 07, 2012: Bayou Aviation thanks customers at Appreciation Day
