What happened
The accident occurred on August 1, 1981, while the aircraft was en route. At the time of the event, the pilot was operating under visual flight rules (VFR) and was flying in the company of another aircraft. During the flight, cloud cover was encountered. Instead of diverting or adhering to VFR weather minimums, the pilot continued forward into instrument meteorological conditions (IMC).
Subsequently, the aircraft departed controlled flight. The pilot was unable to maintain altitude, and the aircraft impacted trees and terrain in a remote area. The wreckage remained undiscovered for several years; the aircraft was eventually located on November 5, 1990.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the circumstances surrounding the loss of control and the subsequent impact with the terrain. The primary finding was that the pilot continued VFR flight into known IMC conditions, which led to spatial disorientation or loss of visual reference, resulting in the inability to maintain controlled flight.