NTSB Factual Report

HISTORY OF FLIGHT

On November 23, 2011, about 2250 central standard time, a Diamond DA20-C1, N203MK, registered to North Star Aviation collided with trees and the terrain in a heavily wooded area in Bern, Wisconsin. The private pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was substantially damaged. The personal flight was being operated under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Instrument meteorological conditions existed in the area at the time of the accident and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated from the Mankato Regional Airport (MKT), Mankato, Minnesota, about 2130, with an intended destination of the Merrill Municipal Airport (RRL), Merrill, Wisconsin.

The pilot worked as a line person at the North Star Aviation at MKT. He worked on November 23, 2011, and was scheduled to finish his shift at 2100. According to witnesses, the pilot was planning on departing for RRL as soon as he finished his work shift.

A co-worker stated that the pilot checked the weather for the flight prior to 1900. He stated that they looked at the weather together and that it "…did not look suitable for his trip." The co-worker reported that the pilot told him he would "scud run it" if he had to. He stated the pilot was in rush and that he wanted to takeoff as soon as possible after his work shift ended.

The chief flight instructor at North Star Aviation stated he spoke with the pilot at 2039 and the pilot relayed to him that the weather looked good for his flight.

Another pilot who had initially planned to fly a portion of the flight with the accident pilot stated that their plans to fly together changed when the accident pilot's work schedule changed. This pilot reported that they spoke about the weather and he told the accident pilot that the weather was going to worsen later in the night. He reported that the accident pilot stated to him that the weather should be fine and if the ceilings got too low he would just "scud run it."

No one witnessed the pilot taking off from MKT. According to Marathon County Sheriff's Department, the pilot sent a text message to a family member around 2230 stating that he would be landing at 2247. The airplane was reported missing on November 24, 2011. The pilot was not in contact with air traffic control during the flight. A search of radar data revealed radar returns which matched the time and projected flight path for the trip from MKT to RRL. The radar returns showed a target at 7,400 feet about 26 miles from the accident site. The last radar return was at 2238 at an altitude of 3,400 feet about 18 miles southwest of the accident site.

The wreckage was located at 2048 in a wooded area about 22 miles west-southwest of RRL, and 1.2 miles south of a direct path between MKT and RRL.

PERSONNEL INFORMATION

The pilot held a private pilot certificate with airplane single-engine land, multi-engine land, and single-engine sea ratings. The pilot was issued a first-class medical certificate on October 29, 2010, with the restriction that he must wear corrective lenses.

The pilot's logbook contained flights dated from September 1, 2010, to November 23, 2011. The logbook indicated the pilot had a total flight time of 175.5 hours. The pilot had logged 96.1 hours of flight time in Diamond DA20 airplanes.

According to the pilot's flight instructor, the pilot was in the process of receiving instruction toward an instrument rating. The pilot's flight instructor stated that they were still working on practicing instrument approaches. He stated that they had a flight lesson on the morning of the accident flight and that the accident pilot was an average to above average student. The pilot's logbook indicated the pilot had a total actual instrument flight time of 3.2 hours and a total simulated flight time of 32.1 hours. The pilot had logged a total of 22.6 hours of night flight time.

AIRCRAFT INFORMATION

The accident airplane was a Diamond DA20- C1, serial number C0403, registered to North Star Aviation. It was a two-place, low-wing, single-engine airplane with fixed landing gear. The airframe was primarily constructed of composite materials. The airplane was equipped with a 125 horsepower Continental Motors IO-240-B (17) engine, serial number 350506.

Maintenance records indicate the last annual inspection was completed on October 10, 2011, at an airframe and engine total time of 2,994.1 hours, and a recording hour meter (hobbs) time of 642 hours. The last 100 hour inspection was completed on November 16, 2011, at an airframe and engine total time of 3,092.0 hours, and a hobbs time of 773.8 hours.

According to fueling records, the airplane was last fueled on November 23, 2011, at 1750 with 8.7 gallons of 100LL aviation fuel.

A flight log was located in the wreckage. The log indicated the airplane's last flight prior to the accident was on November 22, 2011. The ending hobbs time associated with the flight was listed as 790.0 and the tachometer time was listed as 3,105.3 hours. The hobbs time at the time of the accident was 791.5 and the tachometer time was 3,106.8 hours.

METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS

According to a witness the pilot used the computer at North Star Aviation to check the weather conditions earlier in the evening on the day of the flight. North Star Aviation uses the MX Vision Aviation Sentry system for obtaining weather data. Discussion with personnel from MX Aviation Sentry revealed that they cannot retrieve data that was requested for a weather briefing. Therefore, it could not be determined exactly what weather data the pilot retrieved for the flight.

Several recorded surface weather observations were reviewed. Those observations were as follows:

RLL, 22 miles east-northeast of the accident site, reported the conditions at 2255 were wind from 240 degrees at 8 knots; visibility 3 miles with mist; ceiling 500 overcast; temperature 2 degrees Celsius; dew point 2 degree Celsius, and altimeter 30.07 inches of mercury.

Wausau Downtown Airport (AUW), Wausau, Wisconsin, 27 miles southeast of the accident site, reported the conditions at 2254 were wind from 230 degrees at 6 knots; visibility 5 miles with mist; ceiling 700 overcast; temperature 3 degrees Celsius; dew point 1 degree Celsius, and altimeter 30.07 inches of mercury.

Wausau- Central Wisconsin Airport (CWA), Wausau, Wisconsin, 31 miles southeast of the accident site, reported the conditions at 2255 were wind from 230 degrees at 7 knots; visibility 5 miles with mist; ceiling 600 overcast; temperature 2 degrees Celsius; dew point 2 degree Celsius, and altimeter 30.09 inches of mercury.

Chippewa Valley Regional Airport (EAU), Eau Claire, Wisconsin, 68 miles west-southwest of the accident site reported the conditions at 2156 were wind from 180 degrees at 5 knots; visibility 5 miles with mist; clear skies; temperature 2 degrees Celsius; dew point 1 degree Celsius, and altimeter 30.06 inches of mercury.

The departure airport, MKT, reported the conditions at 2135 were wind from 190 degrees at 8 knots; visibility 5 miles; clear skies; temperature 3 degrees Celsius; dew point 1 degree Celsius, and altimeter 30.05 inches of mercury.

Airmen's Meteorological Information (AIRMET) Sierra, issued at 1836, was in effect at the time of the accident. The AIRMET called for instrument meteorological conditions with ceilings below 1,000 feet and visibilities below 3 miles with mist and fog. The AIRMET encompassed the location of the accident.

Radiosonde data from the Austin Straubel International Airport (GRB), Green Bay, Wisconsin, at 1800 indicated the cloud tops were around 2,300 feet.

WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION

The airplane impacted the terrain in a heavily wooded area which contained trees in excess of 60 feet tall. The airplane traveled about 350 feet through the trees on a magnetic heading of 84 degrees prior to coming to rest. Trees along the wreckage path were broken along a descent angle of about 30 degrees.

The first impact mark was with a tree at a height of 40 feet above the ground. A section of the right wing flap and pieces of the canopy were located near the initial tree strike. A piece of one wooden propeller blade was located about 50 feet from the initial tree strike. Sections of the elevator were located about 75 feet from the initial tree strike. The majority of the right wing and a section of the rudder were located within the first 150 feet of the wreckage path. The first identifiable ground scar was about 175 feet from the initial tree impact. Sections of the fuselage, cockpit, engine cowl, and propeller were located near the initial ground scar. The engine was separated from the fuselage and it was located about 50 feet from the main wreckage. The propeller spinner and nose gear were located near the engine.

Airframe

The main portion of the fuselage was located on its right side with the left wing lying nearby. Both main landing gears remained attached to the fuselage. The canopy was completely separated from the fuselage. The fuselage area was separated just aft of the wing attach point. The empennage was separated 3 feet forward of the vertical stabilizer. The fuel tank was compromised and empty of fuel. The emergency locator transmitter was separated from the wreckage.

The propeller hub was separate from the engine at the crankshaft with pieces of the wooden propeller blades attached in the hub. The majority of both propeller blades were separated and found along the wreckage path. The tips of both blades were not located.

The empennage was separated into numerous pieces. The rudder was partially separated from the vertical stabilizer. The right horizontal stabilizer was separated from the empennage. The outboard 2/3 of the elevator remained attached to the horizontal stabilizer. The left horizontal stabilizer was fractured and separated from the empennage. The elevator remained intact except for the inboard section. Continuity was established between the cockpit control stick and the elevator push/pull tube in the aft fuselage at which point the tubes were broken and separated. The rudder cables were attached to the rudder pedals in the fuselage. Continuity was established aft to where the cables were separated from the rudder surface. Both rudder cables exhibited broomstraw separations.

The left wing was located near the nose of the airplane. The flap was separated into three pieces and the aileron was separated into two pieces. The leading edge outboard section of the wing was ripped and shredded aft to the main spar.

The right wing was separated into four sections which were located along the wreckage path. The aileron was separated into three pieces; a one-foot-long outboard section was not located. The flap was separated from the wing in two pieces.

Aileron continuity was established from the control stick to aft of the cockpit bulkhead. One push-pull control tube for the right aileron was separated and missing, and the other was separated near the wing root. Both tubes for the left aileron were present. One was separated at the mixing unit in the fuselage and the other remained attached at the mixing unit. Sections of push/pull tubes were located amongst the wreckage. It was not identified which control surfaces the tubes were for.

The power lever was in the idle position, the mixture control was full rich, and the alternate air lever was in the closed position.

Engine

The crankshaft propeller flange was fractured and remained attached to the separated propeller. All of the cylinders remained attached to the crankcase. The rocker arms and rocker arm covers for the intake valve on the number 2 and number 3 cylinders were missing.

Both magnetos and the vacuum pump were separated from the engine. The right magneto sustained impact damage. The magneto was disassembled and no anomalies were noted. The left magneto was fractured into several pieces.

All of the spark plugs exhibited normal operating signatures.

A portion of the mixture control cable remained attached to the mixture control lever; the mixture control lever was observed near the lean position and it moved freely. The fuel pump drive coupling was intact and the fuel pump drive moved freely by hand. The fuel pump was disassembled and no anomalies were noted.

The fuel manifold valve was disassembled and the fuel screen was clean. The diaphragm was intact and the diaphragm retaining nut was secure. No scoring was observed on the fuel valve assembly. The fuel injector lines remained attached to their respective fuel injector nozzles. Fuel nozzles 1, 2, and 3 were clear of obstructions. Fuel nozzle 4 had sustained impact damage.

The fuel control throttle lever and throttle plate were observed near the idle position.

The oil filter was separated from the engine. The filter was opened and it was free of debris.

The cylinders, pistons, and intake and exhaust valves were examined with a boroscope. All of the cylinders and valves exhibited normal operating signatures with no scoring. The crankshaft was rotated by hand and thumb compression and suction were obtained on all of the cylinders.

The vacuum pump sustained impact damage. The drive shaft was fractured. The vacuum pump housing was breached and fragments of the vacuum pump rotor exited the pump through the breach when the pump was handled.

No anomalies were identified with the engine or its components that would have prevented normal operation.

MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION

An autopsy was performed on the pilot at the University of Wisconsin, School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin, on November 25, 2011. The death of the pilot was attributed to injuries sustained in the accident.

Toxicology testing for the pilot was performed by the Federal Aviation Administration Civil Aerospace Medical Institute. The test results were negative for all substances tested.

NTSB Probable Cause

The non-instrument-rated pilot's continued visual flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in a loss of control and subsequent impact with the terrain.