Two Fatally Injured When Airplane Went Down Near Warner Robins AFB

The pilot of a Piper PA-32 which went down while attempting an emergency landing at Warner Robins AFB in central Georgia said his engine had stopped, and he would be unable to make it to Middle Georgia Regional Airport, the nearest civilian airfield.

In its preliminary report, the NTSB said that on May 27, about 1805 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-32R-300, N4489F, was destroyed following a collision with terrain while on approach to the Middle Georgia Regional Airport (MCN), Macon, Georgia. The airline transport pilot and one pilot-rated passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was registered to a corporation and was operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and an instrument flight rules flight plan was filed for the flight that departed Apalachicola Regional Airport (AAF), Apalachicola, Florida, destined for Greenville Downtown Airport (GMU), Greenville, South Carolina.

According to preliminary information obtained from the FAA, the pilot reported a slight loss in oil pressure and requested to land at MCN. The controller issued a clearance to MCN airport, put the aircraft on a 360 heading for a modified left base for a Visual Approach (VA) to Runway 23 and descended the aircraft to 3,000 feet. The air traffic controller advised pilot to expect a VA to runway 23 and issued both the wind and altimeter settings. Personnel at Robins Air Force Base (WRB), Warner Robins, Georgia, were also advised of the airplane’s position and the request to transition WRB airspace for landing at MCN, which was approved. After the pilot reported MCN in sight and approximately 5 miles south of MCN, the controller cleared pilot for the VA to runway 23. Before switching the aircraft to MCN tower the controller asked the pilot if "we could provide any further assistance" to the pilot to which the reply was "not at this time".

On initial contact with MCN, the pilot advised that his engine had stopped and he was not going to make it to runway 23. The MCN Local Controller (LC) offered runway 31 for a straight in approach; however, the pilot requested landing on runway 15 at WRB. The MCN LC coordinated with WRB and advised the aircraft to contact WRB tower. The pilot never established communication with WRB and crashed approximately .8 mile northeast of WRB, which was 3 miles southeast of MCN. Smoke was seen from WRB tower and verified by an airborne aircraft. First responders discovered the wreckage in a heavily wooded area approximately 20 minutes after the last radar and radio communications.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov