Summary
An aircraft conducting a night special VFR circle-to-land maneuver at Redlands Airport crashed short of the runway, killing both occupants. The accident occurred under dark, moonless conditions with visibility reduced to 1 mile in fog and haze.
Incident Details
The pilot had completed an instrument landing system (ILS) low approach at Norton Air Force Base (AFB) and received a special VFR clearance to proceed to Redlands. The circling minimum descent altitude (MDA) for Norton is 1,700 feet mean sea level (MSL). Norton AFB elevation is 1,100 feet MSL, while Redlands Airport elevation is 1,572 feet MSL. The circling MDA is 138 feet above Redlands Airport elevation.
Recorded radar data showed the flight descended to 1,800 feet on the ILS, then the Mode C altitude varied between 1,700 and 1,600 feet. The last radar return was about 1 mile from the Redlands Airport at 1,600 feet MSL.
A witness on the airport saw the aircraft fly over runway 08 in a south-to-north direction, describing it as 'low and fast,' and heard the crash sounds immediately thereafter. Evidence at the accident site revealed the left wing contacted the ground in a 42° left bank in a slight nose-down attitude. Few ground reference lights existed in the area, and the pilot had minimum total night experience.
Probable Cause
The official probable cause was the pilot's inadvertent selection of an inappropriate altitude for the attempted night special VFR circle to land maneuver. Contributing factors were the dark night, restricted visibilities, lack of ground reference lights, and the pilot's limited total night experience.