Individually Owned: 150,657
Corporate Owned: 137,281
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report
Vergennes, Vermont 05491
Thursday, February 18, 1993 15:36 EST
NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident
ON A FLIGHT FROM GLENN FALLS TO LAKE PLACID, NY, THE NON INSTRUMENT RATED PILOT ENCOUNTERED DETERIORATING WEATHER. ATC DATA SHOWED THIS OCCURRED OVER MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN AT ABOUT 1517 EST NEAR BURLINGTON, VT. THE PILOT ELECTED TO RETURN TO GLENN FALLS. AT ABOUT 1521, HE TOLD THE CONTROLLER HE HAD LAKE CHAMPLAIN IN VIEW. THE LAKE WAS MOSTLY FROZEN OVER WITH APRX 3 FT OF SNOW ON THE SURFACE. ABOUT 5 MIN LATER, RADAR SERVICE WAS TERMINATED, AND THE PILOT ACKNOWLEDGED. NO FURTHER TRANSMISSIONS BY THE PILOT WERE RECEIVED. WRECKAGE WAS FOUND ON THE FROZEN SURFACE OF LAKE CHAMPLAIN NEAR THE VERMONT SHORE. AN EXAM REVEALED THE AIRPLANE HAD IMPACTED THE ICE IN A RIGHT WING LOW ATTITUDE. IT WAS EXTENSIVELY DAMAGED, BUT NO PREIMPACT ANOMALIES OF THE AIRFRAME OR ENGINE WERE FOUND. A WITNESS ON THE NEW YORK LAKE SHORE SAW AN AIRPLANE AT ABOUT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT, IN A STEEP LEFT TURN AT ABOUT 250 FT AGL. HE STATED HE LOST SIGHT OF THE AIRPLANE DUE TO THE BAD WEATHER. HE ALSO STATED THAT AT THE TIME HE SAW THE AIRPLANE, A SEVERE BLIZZARD WAS MOVING ACROSS THE AREA AND IT LASTED ABOUT 15 MIN.
NTSB Probable Cause Narrative
VFR FLIGHT BY THE PILOT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC), AND HIS FAILURE TO MAINTAIN SUFFICIENT ALTITUDE OR CLEARANCE FROM SNOW COVERED TERRAIN AFTER BECOMING SPATIALLY DISORIENTED IN WHITEOUT CONDITIONS. THE ADVERSE WEATHER AND SNOW COVERED TERRAIN WERE RELATED FACTORS.
Event Information
| Type of Event | Accident |
| Event Date | 2/18/1993 |
| Event Day of the Week | Thursday |
| Time of Event | 1536 |
| Event Time Zone | Eastern Standard Time |
| Event City | VERGENNES |
| Event State | VERMONT |
| Event Country | -- |
| Zipcode of the event site | 05491 |
| Event Date Year | 1993 |
| Event Date Month | 2 |
| MidAir Collision Indicator | No |
| On Ground Collision occurred ? | No |
| Event Location Latitude | |
| Event Location Longitude | |
| Event Location Airport | |
| Event Location Nearest Airport ID | |
| Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport | Off Airport/Airstrip |
| Distance from airport in statute miles | 0 |
| Degrees magnetic from airport | 0 |
| Airport Elevation | -- |
| Weather Briefing Completeness | Full |
| Investigator's weather source | Weather Observation Facility |
| Time of the weather observation | 1450 Eastern Standard Time |
| Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) | 360 |
| Weather Observation Facility ID | BTV |
| Elevation of weather observation facility | 334 |
| Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) | 35 |
| Time Zone of the weather observation | EST |
| Lighting Conditions | Day |
| Lowest Ceiling Height | 0 |
| Lowest Non-Ceiling Height | 0 |
| Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions | Unknown |
| Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling | Overcast |
| Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) | 0 |
| Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) | 0 |
| Visibility (Statute Miles) | 0 |
| Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) | -10 |
| Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) | -11 |
| Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) | 290 |
| Variable Wind Indicator | Unknown |
| Wind Speed (knots) | 7 |
| Wind Velocity Indicator | Unknown |
| Wind Gust Indicator | Unknown |
| Wind Gust (knots) | 0 |
| Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) | 29 |
| Density Altitude (feet) | 0 |
| Intensity of Precipitation | Light |
| METAR weather report | -- |
| Event Highest Injury | Fatal |
| On Ground, Fatal Injuries | 0 |
| On Ground, Minor Injuries | 0 |
| On Ground, Serious Injuries | 0 |
| Injury Total Fatal | 1 |
| Injury Total Minor | -- |
| Injury Total None | -- |
| Injury Total Serious | -- |
| Injury Total All | 1 |
| Investigating Agency | NTSB |
| NTSB Docket Number (internal use) | 433 |
| NTSB Notification Source | -- |
| NTSB Notification Date | Feb 19 1993 12:00AM |
| NTSB Notification Time | 1630 |
| Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information | 52721 |
| Date of most recent change to record | Dec 11 2000 1:08PM |
| User who most recently changed record | dbo |
| Basic weather conditions | Instrument Meteorological Cond |
| FAA District Office | -- |
Aircraft Involved |
|
|---|---|
Aircraft #1 |
|
| Aircraft Registration Number | N1192Z |
| NTSB Number | BFO93FA030 |
| Missing Aircraft Indicator | N |
| Federal Aviation Reg. Part | Part 91: General Aviation |
| Type of Flight Plan filed | None |
| Flight plan Was Activated? | -- |
| Damage | Destroyed |
| Aircraft Fire | None |
| Aircraft Explosion | None |
| Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name | American General Aircraft |
| Aircraft Model | AG5B |
| Aircraft Series Identifier | AG5B |
| Aircraft Serial Number | 10040 |
| Certified Max Gross Weight | 1500 |
| Aircraft Category | Airplane |
| Aircraft Registration Class | U.S. Registered/U.S. Soil |
| Aircraft is a homebuilt? | No |
| Flight Crew Seats | -- |
| Cabin Crew Seats | -- |
| Passenger Seats | -- |
| Total number of seats on the aircraft | 4 |
| Number of Engines | 1 |
| Fixed gear or retractable gear | Fixed |
| Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection | Annual |
| Date of Last Inspection | Feb 11 1993 12:00AM |
| Airframe hours since last inspection | -- |
| Airframe Hours | -- |
| ELT Installed | Yes |
| ELT Activated | Yes |
| ELT Aided Location of Event Site | Yes |
| ELT Type | -- |
| Aircraft Owner Name | A. BASHAWATY/JOHN DERUBEIS |
| Aircraft Owner Street Address | P.O. BOX 136 |
| Aircraft Owner City | COLD SPRNG HRBR |
| Aircraft Owner State | NY |
| Aircraft Owner Country | |
| Aircraft Owner Zipcode | 11724 |
| Operator is an individual? | -- |
| Operator Name | A. BASHAWATY/JOHN DERUBEIS |
| Operator Same as Owner? | Yes |
| Operator Is Doing Business As | -- |
| Operator Address Same as Owner? | Yes |
| Operator Street Address | P.O. BOX 136 |
| Operator City | COLD SPRNG HRBR |
| Operator State | NY |
| Operator Country | |
| Operator Zip code | 11724 |
| Operator Code | |
| Owner has at least one certificate | None |
| Other Operator of large aircraft? | No |
| Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation | Unknown |
| Operator Certificate Number | -- |
| Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not | -- |
| Indicates Domestic or International Flight | -- |
| Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail | -- |
| Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) | Personal |
| Second Pilot on Board | No |
| Departure Point Same as Event | No |
| Departure Airport Code | GFL |
| Departure City | GLENS FALLS |
| Departure State | NY |
| Departure Country | |
| Departure Time | 0 |
| Departure Time Zone | |
| Destination Same as Local Flt | -- |
| Destination Airport Code | LKP |
| Destination City | LAKE PLACID |
| Destination State | NY |
| Destination Country | |
| Specific Phase of Flight | Cruise |
| Report sent to ICAO? | -- |
| Evacuation occurred | -- |
| Date of most recent change to record | Jan 2 2001 10:34AM |
| User who most recently changed record | dbo |
| Since inspection or accident | -- |
| Event Location Runway Number and Location | 0 |
| Runway Length | -- |
| Runway Width | -- |
| Sight Seeing flight | No |
| Air Medical Flight | No |
| Medical Flight | -- |