Reminder about Thunderstorm Season

Copied from AVWeb site, as posted from Aviation Safety Magazine

March 3, 2020, Bishop, GA

Piper PA-46-310P Malibu

The airplane was destroyed at about 1634 Eastern time after it flew into an area of convective activity. The pilot and two passengers were fatally injured. Instrument conditions prevailed; an IFR flight plan had been filed.

At about 1630, while maneuvering to transit north of Atlanta’s airspace, ATC gave the flight a heading to fly, which the pilot advised was directly toward a convective cell that was “pretty big.” The controller explained that he would be turning him north through an area radar depicted as light precipitation, or the flight would have to be rerouted to the south of Atlanta. At about 1633, when the controller asked about flight conditions were, the pilot responded, “Rain.” There were no further transmissions from the pilot; the airplane’s radar returns ended at the western edge of an east-west-oriented line of severe thunderstorms and rain showers.

A witness heard engine noise and then saw the airplane spinning toward the ground in a nose-low attitude until it disappeared from sight. The witness also stated he observed scattered rain showers in the area, with the cloud bases at about 2500 to 3000 feet. There was no lightning or thunder. The fuselage, wings, empennage and airframe components were located along a ½-mile-long debris path.