Heavy precipitation and thunderstorms were predicted on the day of the accident flight. [iStock]
Key Takeaways:
A pilot chose to undertake a flight despite explicit pre-flight warnings about severe convective weather, downplaying the risks involved.
During the flight, the pilot was directed into a 10-mile "band of showers" which was, in fact, a dangerous Level 4/5 thunderstorm, resulting in a loss of control and a fatal crash.
Contributing factors included the pilot's decision to proceed, potentially insufficient real-time storm intensity information from air traffic control, and a missed SIGMET issued after his initial weather brief.
“I’ve been watching the Weather Channel, so I probably can use an abbreviated brief,” said the pilot. He had called Flight Service for a trip from Diamondhead, Mississippi (66Y), to St. Louis Regional Airport in Illinois (KALN).
“You’ve been watching, and you still want to go?” the briefer asked.
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Peter Garrison taught himself to use a slide rule and tin snips, built an airplane in his backyard, and flew it to Japan. He began contributing to FLYING in 1968, and he continues to share his columns, ""Technicalities"" and ""Aftermath,"" with FLYING readers.
