Accident Sequence
The twin-engine airplane was conducting an Instrument Landing System (ILS) approach to Runway 3 in instrument meteorological conditions. Radar data indicated that after being vectored to the approach, the airplane remained left of the localizer throughout the approach, then turned right approximately 2 miles before the final approach fix (FAF). Subsequently, it turned left of the course line. When abeam the FAF, the airplane was approximately 1 mile left of course. As it closed to about 1.5 miles from the runway threshold, it had veered about 1.3 miles left of the course line. Air traffic control instructed the pilot to turn left to a heading of 270 degrees. The aircraft continued turning left through the assigned heading and appeared to head back toward the ILS course line. Radar showed another aircraft inbound on the ILS course line, and the tower instructed the pilot to turn left immediately. Thereafter, the aircraft disappeared from radar coverage.
Witness Observations
Three witnesses provided accounts. The first, located approximately 1.25 miles northwest of the accident site, heard a very loud noise and observed the airplane flying toward a building about 60 feet high. The airplane pitched up 45–90 degrees just before the building and vanished into clouds. The second witness, about 1 mile northwest, heard a low-flying aircraft and saw a white twin-engine airplane banking left out of the clouds. It leveled out and re-entered clouds seconds later, at an altitude of 100–200 feet. The third witness, adjacent to the accident site, heard a low-flying airplane that grew louder; looking up, they observed the airplane in a near vertical attitude as it impacted trees and the side of an apartment complex.
Weather and Aircraft Examination
A weather observation taken about 15 minutes after the accident reported visibility of 4 statute miles, light drizzle and mist, and an overcast ceiling at 400 feet. Examination of the airplane revealed no preimpact mechanical anomalies.