Primary finding
Probable cause
The student pilot's improper decision to fly in night visual meteorological conditions and his failure to maintain altitude and clearance from obstacles.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The student pilot, with about 24 hours of flight experience, departed on a local flight with a passenger in night visual meteorological conditions. During cruise flight, the airplane struck a 102-foot-high power line. The power line broke through the cockpit windshield, and the airplane descended and impacted terrain. No mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane were reported that would have precluded normal operation.
Source record
Factual narrative
On March 26, 2013, about 2200 central daylight time, a Bellanca 17-30A, N96JG, struck a power line during cruise flight near Plainview, Texas. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the wing. The student pilot sustained minor injuries and a passenger was uninjured. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight that was not operating on a flight plan. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident for the local flight that originated from Hale County Airport, Plainview, Texas, at time unknown. A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector stated that the airplane struck a power line that was about 102 feet in height during en route cruise. The power line broke the windshield, and the airplane descended into terrain. The lower or upper portions of the fuselage or empennage were struck by a power line. The pilot sustained minor injuries and the passenger was uninjured. No mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal airplane operation were reported by the FAA. The pilot's student pilot certificate was revoked because the pilot did not hold a pilot certificate while carrying a passenger. The student pilot had a total flight time of about 24 hours, of which 8 hours were in the airplane make and model. The student pilot did not contact the National Transportation Safety Board Investigator-in-Charge (IIC) after a voicemail was left by the IIC on April 15, 2013, instructing the student pilot to contact the IIC. A National Transportation Safety Board Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident/Incident Report (Form 6120.1) was sent to the student pilot on April 17, 2013. A Form 6120.1 was not received from the pilot.