According to the pilot, he was flying the second airplane in a flight of two, about one mile behind the lead airplane. The lead airplane pilot reported to him, via the airplane's radio, that he encountered decreasing visibility, and that he was making a 180° turn to the left to exit the area.

The pilot recalled that after losing sight of the lead airplane, he made a shallow climbing turn to the right and noticed that the terrain was rising. He recalled that he entered the clouds for a few seconds and, "At that moment I ran into the trees which I never saw coming."

The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings.

The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

The pilot reported that the temperature was 60° Fahrenheit with 8 miles visibility and 1,500-foot ceilings.

The nearest METAR was about 1 mile away and reported that the temperature was 54° Fahrenheit and the dew point was 52° Fahrenheit. The visibility was 8 statute miles with light rain. The ceiling was broken at 500 feet and overcast at 1,500 feet.