Incident Details
While conducting a low-level law enforcement patrol flight, the pilot crossed a ridge and observed a parked vehicle. To investigate further, he lowered the flaps and descended to approximately 200 feet into a canyon. The pilot made a second pass over the vehicle and initiated a right turn. During the turn, the airplane encountered a tailwind that resulted in a rapid loss of airspeed and a descent.
The pilot attempted to recover by leveling the airplane and increasing power. However, the airplane was too slow and too low to turn out of the canyon. Consequently, the airplane stalled and impacted the terrain. The pilot reported that there were no preflight mechanical malfunctions or anomalies with the airplane.
Probable Cause
The official finding states that the probable cause was the pilot's decision to conduct a low-level flight in mountainous terrain in an area where downdrafts were prevalent, resulting in the inadvertent loss of control and the collision with the terrain.