Incident Overview
Witnesses reported hearing an airplane engine operating at high power for approximately five seconds at night, followed by the sound of impact. They proceeded to the scene and discovered the airplane on fire on the left side of the approach end of runway 03. The pilot was removed from the aircraft, and the fire was subsequently extinguished.
Accident Sequence
The airplane struck a runway threshold light located about 25 feet to the left of the runway. After the impact, it slid approximately 100 feet into trees, angling away from the runway on a heading of 360 degrees. The outboard five feet of the left wing was bent upward about 20 degrees. Ground scars were found corresponding to the positions of the left, right, and nose landing gears, all of which had collapsed. The inboard section of the left wing came to rest on the nose of the airplane.
Aircraft Damage
The propeller blades were deformed, exhibiting "S" bending and leading edge gouges. Flight control continuity was verified to the rudder and elevator. However, the aileron control cables had separated with puffed ends, and all separations occurred at locations other than attachment points.
Pilot Condition
The pilot received head injuries and has no memory of the accident.
Probable Cause
The official finding indicates the probable cause was the pilot's failure to maintain airplane control during a go-around.