Piper PA-28-181 N8074Z

Summary

On 23 December 1997 at about 23:14 local time, a Piper PA-28-181 registered N8074Z, operated by Jose Mitja, was involved in an accident near Tallahassee, Florida, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

23 December 1997 at 23:14

Classification

Accident

Location

Tallahassee, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Tallahassee Regional A/P (TLH)

Coordinates

30.3897, -84.5100

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-181

Registration

N8074Z

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Jose Mitja

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Columbus → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

ATL98FA030

2 people died.

The pilot's failure to maintain the proper glidepath and adequate obstacle clearance which resulted in collision with a power transmission line.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was executing the ILS runway 36 approach when the airplane struck a 150 foot high power line, located about 2.5 miles south of the airport. The local air traffic controller stated that shortly after clearing the accident airplane to land, the tower had a power interruption which caused the radar to blink and get skewed. She then noticed the airplane's data block disappeared. Prior to the power outage, she had been looking out the window to check the weather conditions, and did not notice any problems with the airplane. The approach controller stated he did not notice anything unusual with the airplane after handing it off to the tower. He stated the airplane's altitude appeared normal, and he did not see it deviate from the localizer. According to the supervisor, he saw a low altitude alert for the airplane, which was followed shortly by the interruption of power to the building. He did not see the airplane make any lateral deviations from the localizer. The reported weather consisted of a 500 feet overcast and 3 miles visibility. Examination of the airplane did not disclose evidence of mechanical malfunction. The minimum altitude for the approach was 376 feet above the ground. A flight test of the ILS navigational facility did not disclose anomalies.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.