At 1132 eastern time, a Beech S-35 struck terrain in cruise flight near Clear Spring, killing the pilot. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed and a VFR flight plan was filed. The pilot departed about 1000 and then returned because he could not maintain VFR. At 1121 he departed a second time. At 1126 he requested flight following from Washington Center and said he could not maintain VFR. The Center controller suggested he return to his origination point of Hagerstown Airport and file IFR. A tower controller at Hagerstown briefly saw the airplane cruising at 1000 feet msl in an area where terrain was about 700 feet msl. Witnesses near the crash site reported rain and dense fog. The pilot, who reported more than 11,500 hours of flight time, had told the airplanes owner he would no longer fly at night or IFR.
July 26, Clear Spring, Md. / Beech Bonanza
At 1132 eastern time, a Beech S-35 struck terrain in cruise flight near Clear Spring, killing the pilot. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed and a VFR flight plan was filed. The pilot departed about 1000 and then returned because he could not maintain VFR. At 1121 he departed a second time. At 1126 he requested flight following from Washington Center and said he could not maintain VFR. The Center controller suggested he return to his origination point of Hagerstown Airport and file IFR. A tower controller at Hagerstown briefly saw the airplane cruising at 1000 feet msl in an area where terrain was about 700 feet msl. Witnesses near the crash site reported rain and dense fog. The p...
Key Takeaways:
- A pilot was killed when his Beech S-35 crashed in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) near Clear Spring, despite having filed a VFR flight plan.
- The pilot made multiple attempts to fly VFR in IMC, returning once before departing a second time and eventually requesting flight following while stating he could not maintain VFR.
- Despite possessing over 11,500 flight hours, the pilot had previously informed the aircraft owner that he would no longer fly at night or under IFR conditions.
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