Focke-Wulf FWP 149D N132FW

Summary

On 17 November 2013 at about 10:55 local time, a Focke-Wulf FWP 149D registered N132FW, operated by Parker Luke G, was involved in an accident near Kenansville, North Carolina, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

17 November 2013 at 10:55

Classification

Accident

Location

Kenansville, North Carolina, United States

Nearest airport

Duplin County Airport (DPL)

Coordinates

35.0147, -77.9606

Aircraft

Focke-Wulf FWP 149D

Registration

N132FW

Category

Airplane

Year built

1960

Engines

1

Operator

Parker Luke G

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Jacksonville → Kenansville

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

ERA14FA044

1 person died.

The pilot’s loss of control in instrument meteorological conditions for reasons that could not be determined because examination of the airframe and engine revealed no anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s self-induced pressure to make the flight.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the pilot's wife, the pilot departed on a cross-country flight to attend a friend's funeral. He told her that he intended to stop to purchase fuel at an airport 20 miles from the departure airport. Although she reported that the pilot had indicated to her the night before the accident that he was concerned about a cold front that was moving in, it could not be determined whether he consulted any weather resources before the flight, and there was no record that he obtained an official preflight weather briefing. The pilot departed without filing an instrument flight rules flight plan for the flight; instrument meteorological conditions existed at the time of departure. A witness at the departure airport reported that he observed an airplane taxiing and heard it depart and that the weather at the time was very foggy. A review of air traffic control radar data showed the airplane 1 mile north of the departure airport tracking northwest toward the intended fuel stop destination, and the last radar target was 8 miles northwest of the departure airport. The airplane's wreckage was located in a wooded area resting nose-down at the base of a tree 1/2 mile from the destination airport. All flight control surfaces and major components were located at the accident site. Postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. The reported weather conditions at both airports about the time of the accident included low ceilings and low visibility; fog was reported at the destination airport, and the departure airport had been reporting overcast ceilings at 200 ft above ground level for several hours before the flight departed. It is likely that the pilot placed pressure upon himself to make the flight because he was going to attend his friend's funeral.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.