Accident Details
The twin-engine airplane was destroyed when it struck level terrain during a missed approach procedure. The pilot had been conducting a VOR-A approach and descended 400 feet below the minimum descent altitude (MDA), prompting an air traffic controller to advise a check of altitude. Following a declaration of a missed approach, the controller issued two vectors, which the pilot acknowledged. Subsequently, both radar and radio contact with the aircraft were lost. At one point during the flight, the pilot was advised of and acknowledged that the runway visual range (RVR) at a nearby airport was 3,000 feet.
Radar data showed the aircraft at an altitude of 2,100 feet above mean sea level (MSL), and then at 1,600 feet MSL four seconds later.
Weather Conditions
Approximately 20 minutes before the accident, the destination airport reported an overcast ceiling of 300 feet above ground level (AGL) with visibility of 1½ miles. About 20 minutes after the accident, conditions worsened to an overcast ceiling of 100 feet AGL and visibility of ½ mile.
Pilot Background
The pilot had obtained a multiengine airplane rating two months prior to the accident. Total logged time in multiengine airplanes was 25 hours, of which 23 hours were in the accident airplane. As pilot-in-command of the accident airplane, the pilot had logged 11.4 hours, while simulated instrument time in that airplane totaled 7.8 hours.
Findings
Examination of the aircraft revealed no anomalies that could be attributed to a preexisting condition.