What happened
A special VFR ferry flight, traveling from Tucson, Arizona, toward Greybull, Wyoming, crashed in the vicinity of Dixon Airport. The aircraft was not equipped for IFR operations. During the flight, after passing over Winslow, the crew received warnings that continuing northbound under VFR conditions was not advisable due to weather.
At the time of the accident, weather observations and eyewitness accounts indicated low ceilings, cloud cover, and snow in the region of southcentral Wyoming and northwestern Colorado. Witnesses near the Dixon Airport reported hearing an aircraft flying at a low altitude traveling from west to east, while another individual northeast of the airport noted the sound of engines revving.
Radar tracking indicated the aircraft was moving north, positioned slightly east of the Dixon Airport. The data showed the aircraft performing a clockwise 360-degree turn northeast of the airport. The final radar contact placed the aircraft roughly one mile north-northeast of the crash site. The aircraft struck snow-covered terrain while in a steep nose-down attitude. The accident resulted in two fatalities.
Findings
- The aircraft was operating under VFR in conditions characterized by low ceilings and snow.
- The flight was not instrumented for IFR flight, limiting the crew's ability to navigate through deteriorating weather.