PLT OF A PIPER ARCHER; PA28; DSNDED BELOW ASSIGNED ALT DURING INTERCEPTING THE LOC.

Narrative

ON NOV/XA/00; I WAS RETURNING FROM SAVANNAH; GA; TO CLT; NC; HOME BASE FOR MY AIRPLANE. I HAD TAKEN MY DAUGHTER AND A FRIEND OF HERS TO SAVANNAH THAT DAY TO VISIT A COLLEGE. I WAS ON AN IFR FLT PLAN; THOUGH CONDITIONS WERE VMC. MY ALT; PER MY FLT PLAN; WAS 5000 FT MSL. AT APPROX XA20 (DUSK; AFTER SUNSET AND CLOSE TO NIGHT) AFTER BEING HANDED OFF TO CLT APCH CTL BY COLUMBIA APCH CTL; I WAS TOLD BY CLT TO EXPECT A VISUAL APCH TO RWY 36L IN CLT; BUT I MADE A REQUEST FOR RWY 36R. THE ORIGINAL CLT APCH CTLR NOTED MY REQUEST; THEN HANDED ME OFF TO ANOTHER FREQ AND APCH CTLR. THE NEW CTLR GAVE ME A HDG OF 30 DEGS AND INSTRUCTED ME TO DSND TO 3600 FT AND TO INTERCEPT THE LOC FOR RWY 36R. I ACKNOWLEDGED THE INSTRUCTION; TURNED TO 30 DEGS AND BEGAN MY DSCNT AT A RATE OF APPROX 700 FPM. DURING THE APCH; MY FRONT SEAT PAX APPEARED A BIT APPREHENSIVE; LOOKING FOR THE ARPT AND NOT BEING ABLE TO SEE IT YET. I ATTEMPTED TO EXPLAIN A LITTLE ABOUT WHAT I WAS DOING AS I COMMENCED THE APCH INTO CLT; AND ALSO TRIED TO GENERALLY POINT OUT THE DIRECTION OF AND DISTANCE TO THE ARPT. AS I WAS TALKING WITH THE PAX; I INTERCEPTED THE LOC AND TURNED TO A HDG OF 003 DEGS; CONTINUING MY DSCNT. WHEN I FINISHED TALKING AND COMPLETING MY TURN; I CHKED MY ALT AGAIN AND REALIZED I HAD DSNDED TO 2900 FT; BELOW MY ASSIGNED ALT OF 3600 FT. I IMMEDIATELY CLBED BACK TO 3600 FT; AND CONTINUED THE APCH. A COUPLE OF MINS LATER THE CTLR GAVE ME AN INSTRUCTION TO DSND TO 2300 FT; AND I ACKNOWLEDGED THE INSTRUCTION AND DSNDED TO 2300 FT. THE CTLR DID NOT MENTION MY ALTDEV AT ANY TIME. WHEN I CALLED THE ARPT IN SIGHT ABOUT 4 MI OUT; I WAS CLRED FOR THE VISUAL APCH; CONTACTED THE TWR PER THE APCH CTLR'S INSTRUCTION; AND WAS CLRED TO LAND ON RWY 36R. THE REST OF THE APCH AND LNDG (WHICH BY THEN WAS A NIGHT LNDG) WAS UNEVENTFUL.