Fatal Lancair LC41 550-FG Crash Near Portland International Airport (N621ER)

Accident Overview and Flight History On February 16, 2008, at approximately 0828 Pacific standard time, a Lancair LC41 550-FG, registration N621ER, was destroyed after impacting terrain while maneuvering near Portland International Airport (PDX) in Portland, Oregon. The aircraft was operating under an instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan for a personal cross-country flight under 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The flight originated at Klamath Falls Airport (LMT) around 0630, with PDX as its destination. The pilot, who was the sole occupant and registered owner of the aircraft, was killed in the accident. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the incident. The pilot filed an IFR flight plan at 0517 and received a route briefing at 0551 using the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Direct User Access Terminal (DUAT) service. After departing LMT, the pilot contacted Air Traffic Control (ATC) at 0642 to request an IFR clearance to PDX, which was issued at 0643. At 0720, the pilot reported being level at 14,000 feet and proceeding direct to Corvallis. Subsequently, at 0744, ATC issued a descent clearance to 10,000 feet, which the pilot acknowledged. At 0752, the pilot was instructed to change frequency to Portland Approach Control and acknowledged the instruction. The aircraft then approached PDX from the southeast and received radar vectors to intercept the localizer course for the Instrument Landing System (ILS) runway 10R approach.