Piper PA-28 Crash in Aumessas (F-GFIZ)

Accident Overview On Wednesday 2 May 2001 at 8:26 UTC, a Piper PA 28 RT-201T, registration F-GFIZ, equipped with a Continental TSIO-360-FB engine, crashed into a hill near Aumessas in the Gard department of France. The operator was listed as Club d’Ille et Vilaine. The flight was a VFR journey from Alès to Rennes. The aircraft carried a pilot and two passengers; all three occupants were killed. The accident site was known as “La Luzette.” The impact occurred at an altitude of 1,430 metres (4,700 feet). The pilot had departed Alès at 8:05 UTC with radio contact. The pilot climbed to flight level 45 and headed for VOR GAI on a magnetic heading of 270°. Approximately fifteen minutes after departure, the aircraft struck a hill. The final radar plot was 10 nautical miles from the accident site, showing the aircraft at flight level 46. The aircraft approached the terrain from 780 feet to 220 feet above the ground in almost two minutes. The altimeter was set to 1013. The pilot’s qualification records did not show an instrument flight rating. The pilot had a private pilot licence and experience of 1,775 hours. The autologistic wind conditions included fog at Mont Aigoual. The aircraft was in clean configuration with gear and flaps up. The autopilot was in heading mode. No toxic substances or alcohol were found in the pilot’s blood. The analysis section in the source is incomplete.