Accident Overview
A commercial pilot was conducting a personal flight with his immediate family, returning to his home and business located on the shore of a remote lake adjacent to an airport. Prior to departure, the pilot received forecast and current weather reports indicating an approaching cold or occluded front and deteriorating visual flight rules (VFR) weather conditions.
Flight Details
During the flight, the pilot transited a mountain pass into an area of rapidly deteriorating weather surrounding the destination lake. He reported that he elected to fly along the north shore of the frozen, snow-covered lake in moderate falling and blowing snow, with visibility he estimated at about one mile, at an altitude of approximately 400 feet. Believing he saw the south shoreline close to his destination, he initiated a left turn toward that shoreline and over the lake. He indicated that once over the snow-covered white lake, with white falling snow and an overcast sky, he lost sight of the shoreline and turned right to return to the north shore. During the turn, he lost depth perception, descended, and collided with the lake, about 6 miles north-northeast of the destination airport.
Post-Accident Events
The airplane sank almost immediately after impact. The pilot reported that he had to cut his seatbelt to escape. He was unable to rescue any of his three passengers, his juvenile daughters, before the airplane sank in approximately 800 feet of water. The pilot's wife also managed to exit the airplane, and both individuals hiked to a remote, unoccupied cabin to await rescue. The reported weather at the destination airport, approximately 37 minutes after the accident, was: wind 320 degrees at 12 knots, visibility one-half mile in heavy snow, vertical visibility 200 feet, and an indefinite ceiling. The elevation of the lake is approximately 260 feet above mean sea level.