What happened
During a nighttime arrival at Tuscaloosa Airport, an aircraft was performing its final approach to runway 04. While descending toward the airfield, the plane impacted several trees and came to rest a few hundred yards before reaching the runway threshold. The accident resulted in one fatality and left the pilot with serious injuries.
Findings
The investigation determined that the aircraft struck obstacles due to an error in judging both altitude and distance from the ground. Several environmental conditions were present during the flight, including rain, fog, and drizzle, which reduced visibility to approximately three miles or less. The presence of high obstructions near the approach path and the specific lighting configuration of runway 04, which includes steady burner and sequential flasher approach lights, were also noted as factors in the circumstances surrounding the undershoot.