Incident Description
The pilot was cleared for the VOR runway 17 approach. The field elevation was 590 feet, and the minimum descent altitude was 980 feet. The missed approach point was located 10.4 nautical miles outbound from the Waco VOR, which coincided with the runway threshold. According to the pilot, the passenger seated in the right front seat established visual contact with the airport. After confirming that the airport was in sight and the runway environment identified, the pilot continued descent toward the runway to land on runway 17. The pilot stated that he realized there would not be adequate runway to safely land and initiated a right turn to execute a missed approach. During this maneuver, the right wing of the airplane impacted the top of trees. The accident occurred under dark night conditions with low ceiling and visibility.
The FAA inspector at the scene reported that after impacting the trees, the airplane continued through the trees for approximately 400 feet on a track of 344 degrees before coming to rest on a heading of 230 degrees.
Probable Cause
The official probable cause was the pilot's delayed initiation of the missed approach until well below the minimum descent altitude and beyond the published missed approach point. Factors were the dark night and the low ceiling and visibility.