Incident Overview

Date: Monday 24 July 1978
Aircraft Type: Britten-Norman BN-2A Trislander Mk.III-2
Owner/operator: Amphibians
Registration Number: 5Y-CMC
Location: Nyeri Hills – ÿ Kenya
Phase of Flight: En route
Status: Destroyed, written off
Casualties: Fatalities: 5 / Occupants: 11
Component Affected: AircraftAircraft
Category: Accident
An aircraft experienced a crash during a flight to Nairobi due to pilot error in IMC conditions at a low altitude. The pilot flew VFR, resulting in a collision with a hill.An aircraft experienced a crash during a flight to Nairobi due to pilot error in IMC conditions at a low altitude. The pilot flew VFR, resulting in a collision with a hill.

Description

The aircraft departed Samburu at 08:30 for a 50-minute flight to Nairobi and climbed to an altitude 8500 feet. Along the route there was a heavy build up of stratus clouds with scattered cumulonimbus sprouting out of the top. The clouds seemed to extend from 2 000 feet up to 11 000 feet and more and the pilot decided to fly below the clouds and continue VFR. He then realized that the weather was deteriorating very rapidly and within the next minute or two the visibility had been reduced to a few yards. Realizing the proximity to the ground, the pilot applied full power and initiated a climb. A hill appeared ahead and the aircraft crashed into the trees in a nose-up attitude. PROBABLE CAUSE: “The probable cause of this accident was that the pilot flew VFR in IMC weather at a very low altitude, thereby flying blindly into a hill.”

Primary Cause

Pilot’s VFR flight in IMC conditions at a low altitude, leading to a collision with a hill.Pilot’s VFR flight in IMC conditions at a low altitude, leading to a collision with a hill.

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