3 fatal · Piper PA34 · 2018-10-13 · Westhampton Beach, NY, USA
Event
NTSB number
ERA19LA012
Event ID
20181013X75622
Type
Accident
Date
2018-10-13
Location
Westhampton Beach, NY, USA
Coordinates
40.470001, -72.36
Injuries
Highest injury
FATL
Fatal
3
Serious
0
Minor
0
Uninjured
0
Total aboard
3
Aircraft
Make
Piper
Model
PA34
Registration
N593MS
FAR Part
091
Engines
2
Damage
DEST
Conditions
Light
DAYL
Weather
VMC
Probable cause
The instructor's decision to conduct and continue a visual flight rules flight into instrument meteorological conditions with a known flight instrument anomaly, which resulted in spatial disorientation, causing a loss of airplane control and subsequent in-flight breakup. Contributing to the accident were the instructor's lack of recent instrument flight experience and degraded airplane control and decision-making due to hypoxia.