What happened
During an ILS Runway 6 approach, the pilot was informed that preceding traffic had reported breaking out of the clouds at minimum altitudes. While operating under instrument meteorological conditions, the aircraft descended to the decision height of 294 feet, roughly 3 miles before reaching the missed approach point. Rather than initiating the required missed approach procedure, the aircraft continued to fly at or below the decision height altitude for about 28 seconds, covering a distance of approximately one mile.
During this period, the tower controller's display registered four separate low-altitude alerts. The controller noted that they chose not to issue a warning because the flight was in a critical phase and the aircraft appeared to be gaining altitude. Ultimately, the aircraft struck trees and terrain located about 1.5 miles from the start of the landing runway.
Findings
- The pilot failed to execute the prescribed missed approach procedure after reaching decision height.
- The aircraft continued flying at or below decision height altitude for a significant duration during the approach.
- The tower controller did not relay low-altitude alerts to the crew due to the perception that the aircraft was climbing.