What happened
On December 19, 2014, at approximately 10:20 local time, a Piper PA25-235, registration CX-BRH-R, was performing agricultural spraying operations involving urea near Route 9, 314 km mark, in the La Coronilla area of the Rocha Department. While the pilot was attempting to land on an improvised airstrip, the aircraft drifted to the left of the intended path. During this maneuver, the left wing struck an earthen mound, causing the aircraft to capsize. The incident occurred during daylight hours and resulted in substantial damage to the airframe, though no fire was reported.
The investigation
The CIAIA investigation focused on the flight path and the circumstances surrounding the landing attempt on the unpaved, temporary landing site. The investigation established that the aircraft was operating in an agricultural capacity when the loss of directional control occurred during the final approach to the makeshift runway.