UNAUTH PENETRATION OF CLASS D AIRSPACE AND LNDG WITHOUT CLRNC AFTER A PA28-265 PVT PLT GETS LOST AND LANDS AT ABY; GA.

Narrative

THE FLT WAS PLANNED TO GO FROM WINTERHAVEN; FL; TO MARIANNA; FL. THE WHOLE STATE OF FLORIDA APPEARED TO BE CLR FROM THE SATELLITE IMAGE DISPLAY. I DECIDED IT WAS OK TO TAKE OFF. SINCE I WAS FLYING BACK FROM FLORIDA TO DENVER; CO; I WANTED TO COVER AS MUCH GND I COULD IN 1 DAY. SINCE IT WAS STILL EARLY IN THE MORNING I WOULD GET A FULL WX BRIEF LATER AT MARIANNA AFTER THINGS WARMED UP. WX CONDITIONS STARTED TO DETERIORATE NEAR TALLAHASSEE. IN ORDER TO STAY CLR OF TALLAHASSEE; I USED THE XTRACK ERROR DISPLAY ON MY LORAN. THE PLAN WAS TO FLY 5+ MI N OF THE COURSE LINE (5+ MI XTRACK ERROR) WHILE PASSING TALLAHASSEE. AS I APCHED TALLAHASSEE; I COULD SEE SCATTERED CLOUDS ABOUT 1000 FT AGL. I WAS FLYING AT 4500 FT MSL. I DECIDED TO DSND. ON THE WAY DOWN I DECIDED TO CALL FLT WATCH AND GET THE CURRENT WX IN MARIANNA. I WAS UNABLE TO RAISE FLT WATCH. I ASSUMED THAT MY ALT WAS TOO LOW. BEFORE I WENT UNDER THE CLOUDS; I NOTICED MY VOR RECEIVER LOST SIGNAL FROM MARIANNA. I HAD ANTICIPATED THIS BECAUSE OF MY LOW ALT. I ALSO ANTICIPATED REACQUIRING THE MARIANNA VOR N OF TALLAHASSEE. I FELT IT WAS SAFE TO PROCEED BECAUSE IF VISIBILITY STARTED TO TURN BAD I WOULD SIMPLY TURN AROUND AND TRACK OUTBOUND USING MY LORAN. I STARTED TO BECOME CONCERNED ABOUT MY LOCATION BECAUSE IT SEEMED TO TAKE LONGER THAN EXPECTED. MY NAV CONCERN ABATED WHEN I CAME ACROSS AN ARPT THAT I MISTAKENLY BELIEVED WAS TALLAHASSEE COMMERCIAL. I THEN FELT I WAS ON COURSE. WHEN I CAME ACROSS THE ARPT AT ALBANY AND SPOTTED THE CTL TWR; I REALIZED THAT IT COULD NOT BE MARIANNA. I COULD NOT DETERMINE MY LOCATION USING THE LORAN AND I WAS NOT RECEIVING THE MARIANNA VOR. I WAS LOST. I WAS IN LOW CEILING. BEING LOST; I RAN THE RISK OF LOSING VFR REFS. I HAD LOST RELIABLE RADIO NAV CAPABILITY. I WAS A POSSIBLE NAV HAZARD TO OTHER ACFT IN CLASS D AIRSPACE. I HAD SAFETY RESPONSIBILITIES TO BOTH MY PAX AND MYSELF. I MADE A CALL ON 121.5. 'TWR THIS IS THE CHEROKEE IN THE PATTERN' FOLLOWED BY 'TWR THIS CHEROKEE.' I LOOKED AT MY SECTIONAL CHART TO DETERMINE WHICH TWR CTLED FIELD I WAS NEAR. NOT YET REALIZING HOW FAR OFF COURSE I WAS; I INCORRECTLY DETERMINED THAT THE FIELD MUST BE TALLAHASSEE. I SWITCHED MY RADIO TO TALLAHASSEE ATIS; BUT THERE WAS NO SIGNAL. GIVEN THE GRAVITY OF THE SIT; I DETERMINED THAT I MUST LAND AT THE ARPT OFF MY WING. I ENTERED A L DOWNWIND PATTERN FOR RWY 34. I MADE A LOW PASS TO TRY AND ESTABLISH VISUAL COMS. I LOOKED FOR LIGHTS IN THE TWR. I SAW NONE. NEXT I WENT AROUND AND LANDED ON THE NEXT PASS. WHEN I WAS ON THE TXWY I GOT A RED LIGHT FROM THE TWR; SO I STOPPED ON THE TXWY. LOOKING BACK ON MY DECISIONS I SHOULD HAVE STAYED ON 121.5 AND JUST ANNOUNCED MY LNDG INTENTIONS AS I WOULD AT AN UNCTLED FIELD. I FOUND OUT I WAS ON THE GND IN ALBANY; GA. I BEGAN TO REVIEW MY CHART AND MY NAV INSTS. I HAD GONE OFF COURSE TO THE N BY 50 MI. I DETERMINED THAT I HAD MISINTERPRETED MY LORAN'S XTRACK DISPLAY. THE LORAN HAS ONLY A 2 DIGIT XTRACK ERROR DISPLAY. WHEN THE ACFT IS WITHIN 9.9 MI OF THE COURSE LINE; THE SECOND DIGIT IS SLIGHTLY SMALLER THAN THE FIRST. THE SIZE DIFFERENCE BTWN THE FIRST AND SECOND DIGITS IS NOT VERY OBVIOUS. WHEN I SAW THE UNIT DISPLAYING 10 MI (BOTH DIGITS THE SAME SIZE); I MISINTERPRETED IT TO READ 1.0 MI. SINCE I WAS TRYING TO MAINTAIN 5+ MI N OF THE COURSE LINE; I KEPT CORRECTING TO THE N. HAVING TIME TO REFLECT ON THE INCIDENT; I'VE COME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT I SHOWED POOR JUDGEMENT IN LEAVING WINTER HAVEN WITHOUT A FULL WX BRIEFING. MY GOAL THAT DAY WAS TO FLY FROM FLORIDA TO COLORADO. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER TO SIT ON THE GND IN WINTER HAVEN RATHER THAN MARIANNA; EVEN IF I HAD CORRECTLY NAVED TO THAT POINT. PERHAPS I WAS OVER CONFIDENT IN MY SKILL LEVEL AND MY NAV EQUIP WHEN I MADE THE DECISION TO LAUNCH THAT MORNING.