What happened
During an instrument flight, the pilot was cleared by air traffic control to execute a published VOR instrument approach procedure into the destination airport. At the time of the accident, witnesses reported foggy weather with forward visibility between 0 and 100 feet. Witnesses observed the aircraft fly over the airport with a low engine RPM, followed by an increase in RPM and the sound of trees breaking.
The aircraft came to rest approximately 100 yards northwest of runway 4/22 in heavily wooded terrain. The published inbound course for the VOR approach was 309 degrees, with a minimum descent altitude (MDA) of 1,860 feet MSL based on the Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, altimeter setting. The published weather minimums for the approach required a 600-foot ceiling and 1-mile visibility.
The investigation
A handheld GPS receiver was recovered near the main wreckage. Data downloaded from the device recorded the entire flight from 0716:31 to 0749:44. Analysis of the final 63 seconds of data showed the aircraft was heading 299 degrees before initiating a turn to a heading of 017 degrees while descending from 2,000 feet to 1,268 feet MSL.
Investigators found two instrument approach plates—one Jeppesen and one N.O.S.—for the VOR or GPS-A approach within the wreckage. An airport diagram on the back of the Jeppesen plate indicated that trees along the northwestern boundary of the airport were at an elevation of 1,287 feet, while the published airport elevation was 1,209 feet MSL.