The Flight
On 27 November 2019, at 1601 Eastern Standard Time, a privately owned Piper PA-32-260 aircraft with United States registration N50DK and serial number 32-29 departed Toronto/Buttonville Municipal Airport, Ontario. The aircraft was bound for Québec/Neuville Airport, Quebec, with a pilot and six passengers on board. The flight was conducted under visual flight rules and began during daylight hours, though the majority of the planned route would occur after official nightfall, which began one hour after departure.
Diversion and Terrain Strike
En route, the pilot encountered deteriorating weather and made several adjustments to altitude and track. As the aircraft neared Kingston Airport, Ontario, the pilot established radio contact with NAV CANADA's Kingston flight service station and indicated an intention to land at Kingston. At 1705, the aircraft struck terrain approximately 3.5 nautical miles north of Kingston Airport. All seven occupants sustained fatal injuries. The aircraft was destroyed, and there was no post-impact fire.
Investigation
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada conducted a class 3 investigation, which focuses on a limited number of safety issues and may produce recommendations. The investigation analyzed the occurrence, which remains the sole source of factual information for this report.