Incident Overview
A pilot was seriously injured when their aircraft collided with terrain during a go-around after encountering dense fog during the approach. The accident occurred at night under visual flight rules (VFR).
Sequence of Events
The pilot observed haze in the lights at the destination airport but reported excellent ground contact throughout the approach. Upon reaching the runway threshold, the aircraft entered dense ground fog, and the pilot lost all visual reference. The pilot initiated a go-around, but the aircraft crashed during the maneuver.
Official Findings
The investigation identified two occurrences. The first was an in-flight encounter with weather during the final approach phase of a VFR pattern. Contributing factors were the presence of fog and the pilot-in-command's inadequate evaluation of weather conditions.
The second occurrence was an in-flight collision with terrain during the approach phase. The pilot performed an aborted landing and initiated a go-around. The cause of the collision was improper aircraft handling by the pilot. The dark night lighting conditions were a contributing factor.