Dark Night Conditions

Ive always enjoyed flying at night. Theres usually a lot less traffic, the ATC frequency is quieter and its rare to be delayed for an approach, landing or takeoff. Sunsets can be quite amazing from a personal airplane, and Ive been fortunate enough to witness a few sunrises, too. Owing to day-job schedules and airplane availability, most of my instrument training happened at night and, even with all that going on, Im by no means an expert on flying in the dark.

Joseph E. (Jeb) Burnside

Thursday, July 20, 2017 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

A non-instrument-rated private pilot fatally crashed into mountainous terrain during a dark night flight, likely due to inability to see and avoid obstacles amid challenging weather and limited visibility.
Contributing factors included the pilot's lack of night and mountain flying experience, absence of a flight plan or weather briefing, and extremely dark conditions compounded by haze, smoke, and mountain obscuration.
The accident underscores the extreme dangers for VFR-only pilots attempting cross-country flights over mountains at night without sufficient experience, proper planning, or instrument proficiency.

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I’ve always enjoyed flying at night. There’s usually a lot less traffic, the ATC frequency is quieter and it’s rare to be delayed for an approach, landing or takeoff. Sunsets can be quite amazing from a personal airplane, and I’ve been fortunate enough to witness a few sunrises, too. Owing to day-job schedules and airplane availability, most of my instrument training happened at night and, even with all that going on, I’m by no means an expert on flying in the dark.

In fact, landing back at my current home airport at night is a textbook “black hole approach.” I don’t like it at all, and try to arrive in daylight. That doesn’t always work out, leading to maybe one for-real night landing a year at home plate, along with the rest of them.