LOW ON FINAL APCH; HIT TREE; BUT DAMAGE FOUND AFTER LNDG.

Narrative

NIGHT APCH RWY 17 SALINE COUNTY ARPT. ALL NORMAL; LOST INST LIGHTS; REACH FOR FLASHLIGHT. LOOK AT RWY; APPEAR LOW. INCREASE PWR TO REINTERCEPT GLIDE PATH. ALL NORMAL; STILL LOW. SEE TREE DAMAGE (AFTER LNDG). LNDG 'PICTURE' STAYED GOOD BUT LOW. ATTN FOCUSED ON NEW SIGN (IN GLIDE PATH) WITHOUT RED LIGHT (SHOULD BE MARKED OR MOVED). CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: DURING APCH; AT NIGHT; RPTR'S PANEL LIGHTS WENT OUT. WHEN RPTR REACHED FOR A FLASHLIGHT; THE ACFT WENT INTO A SLIP AND LOST ALT. REALIZING HE WAS LOW; HE ADDED PWR TO CLB BACK TO GLIDE PATH; BUT CLIPPED A TREE. THE TREE WAS IN SOMEONE'S BACKYARD WHO CALLED THE POLICE; WHO IN TURN NOTIFIED THE FAA LCL FSDO. THE FAA REQUIRED RPTR TO TAKE 2 HRS OF NIGHT FLT TRAINING. RPTR COMPLAINED OF A DISTRACTING SIGN ON FINAL APCH; BUT SAYS IT IS IN A LEGAL SPOT; AS PERTAINING TO THE ARPT APCH CORRIDOR. HOWEVER; RPTR CLAIMS THAT THE ARPT AUTHS ARE ATTEMPTING TO HAVE IT REMOVED. RPTR SAYS THAT WHEN HE REALIZED HE WAS LOW ON THE APCH; HE THOUGHT THAT IF HE MISSED HITTING THE SIGN HE WOULD BE OK.