Flight History
The airplane departed on a VFR cross-country flight from Michigan to Minnesota amid high wind conditions. Less than an hour later, the pilot attempted to land at an airport in Ohio but was unsuccessful.
Radar Data
A review of the last 2½ minutes of radar data revealed that as the airplane tracked toward runway 27, it descended from 1,900 feet msl to 900 feet msl (about 120 feet agl) and decelerated to a ground speed of 68 knots.
Weather Conditions
Prior to the flight, the pilot had utilized a computer weather reporting system. At the time of the accident, the National Weather Service had issued an urgent message stating: "An intense low pressure system over the upper Great Lakes will cause strong southwest to west winds across southern Michigan...northern Indiana...and northwest Ohio today. Winds will be sustained at 25 to 35 mph with gusts of 45 to 55 mph much of the day." Wind conditions at the airport were from the west-southwest between 30-40 mph, gusting to 40-50 mph.
Airport and Terrain
Runway 27 was 3,882 feet long and 75 feet wide. Eighty-foot trees were located on the north and south sides of the first third of the runway. The trees on the north side were about 200 feet from runway centerline, while those on the south side were about 550 feet from runway centerline. The airport manager described the turbulence between the two sections of trees as a "terrible, terrible funnel effect...with lots of rolling wind."