In December 2019, a Canadian-registry Piper Aerostar 602P with three aboard left Cabo San Lucas in Baja California, Mexico, to return home to Nanaimo on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. The group stopped overnight at Chino, California, east of Los Angeles—perhaps to visit the aviation museum there—and continued the next day to Nanaimo with a stop at Bishop, California. They left Bishop at 2:25 in the afternoon (1425 PST) on an IFR flight plan.
Classic Aftermath: An Attitude Indicator Fails at the Worst Time
Key Takeaways:
- A Canadian Piper Aerostar 602P crashed fatally during a night instrument approach in low visibility after the pilot reported an attitude indicator failure.
- Following the reported failure, the aircraft exhibited erratic changes in speed, heading, and altitude, indicating severe pilot disorientation and eventual loss of control despite ATC assistance.
- The article emphasizes the profound challenge and disorientation pilots face during attitude indicator failures in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC), stressing the critical need to rely strictly on backup instruments and the common lack of preparation for such events.
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