Flight and Pitch-Up
The private certificated pilot was conducting a personal sightseeing flight in a rental airplane equipped with an integrated flight/navigation/autopilot system. The pilot had limited experience in that airplane. During cruise flight, the airplane suddenly pitched upward. The pilot pushed forward on the control yoke and noticed the trim wheel moving in a nose-up direction. She used the manual trim wheel to trim the airplane nose-down, but the airplane continued to pitch upward. She exerted forward pressure on the control yoke and asked her front-seat passenger to help push forward.
Emergency Landing and Collision
The pilot made a mayday call and decided to land at a 2,200-foot gravel-surface airport. She turned onto about a one-mile final approach but stated that she was either going too fast or the runway was too short. The airplane touched down about mid-length on the runway and bounced several times. Seeing the end of the runway approaching, the pilot added full throttle to begin a go-around. The airplane collided with trees at the departure end of the runway.
Autopilot and Training
The pilot reported that she did not know if the autopilot was on or off, and she did not consciously select or use it. She was unsure if the airplane was equipped with electric trim. She recalled seeing the number 7000 displayed in a box above the transponder, which she identified as the autopilot computer. The pilot used the radio transmit button on the left side of the control yoke but did not use any other yoke switches. The autopilot was installed on the right side of the instrument panel. The pilot had not received instruction from the operator or her flight instructor regarding the autopilot system, nor had she familiarized herself with it. The pilot's flight instructor later reported that during a previous training flight with another student, he discovered the autopilot system was on even though he had not turned it on.
Postaccident Examination
Postaccident testing of the autopilot system did not reveal any malfunction.