What happened
On August 4, 2023, a Cessna 172M, registration N13384, was involved in an accident near Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, USVI. The flight, operated under Part 91, was a night cross-country flight intended to help a private pilot accumulate flight hours toward an instrument rating.
The aircraft departed Rafael Hernandez Airport (BQN) in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, at approximately 19:33 AST on an instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan. While en route to Cyril E. King Airport (STT), the crew requested an ILS Runway 10 approach, followed by a missed approach procedure and a return to BQN. After the missed approach, air traffic control instructed the crew to climb and maintain 6,000 ft msl and proceed directly to BQN.
At 21:14:30, ADS-B data showed the aircraft deviating from its assigned heading while climbing. As the airplane entered an area of light to heavy precipitation, it began a right turn. The aircraft turned through 540 degrees and reached an altitude of 6,450 ft msl before entering a right-turning spiral descent. Radar contact was lost at 21:17:25 while the aircraft was at 4,700 ft msl. The controller attempted to contact the crew seven times over the following five minutes without response. The aircraft and its 2 occupants were not recovered, and the aircraft was presumed destroyed.
Findings
Analysis of the flight data and pilot records revealed that while the crew was operating under IFR, the commercial pilot had only 4.9 hours of experience in actual instrument meteorological conditions. The aircraft's flight path, specifically the spiral descent, was consistent with a loss of control caused by spatial disorientation. The pilots' ability to maintain visual references was likely compromised by the night conditions and the presence of precipitation.