Early Analysis: Pilatus PC-12 Crash in Northeast Wyoming

On July 26, 2024, a Pilatus PC-12/47E crashed north of Gillette, Wyoming, after the pilot lost control of the turboprop aircraft.

Sadly, all seven people on board the aircraft perished in the accident. No one on the ground was hurt.

The instrument-rated private pilot and six passengers had departed their fuel stop at Nebraska City Municipal airport (KAFK) approximately two hours earlier for the 300-mile flight to Billings, Montana.

In Early Analysis: Pilatus PC-12 Crash in Northeast Wyoming, the AOPA Air Safety Institute makes a preliminary assessment of the accident, addressing notable portions of the tragic flight and highlighting areas the NTSB will likely investigate to determine a probable cause.

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[jawavartenuk]

Thank you for continuing this series. Although Mr. McSpadden certainly will always be missed, and can never be replaced, your comforting and easy going manner was a welcome relief. Great job!

[airops]

Thank you for the breakdown, great to see you're continuing the early analysis video series that Richard McSpadden started.

[MrSuzuki]

I fly this exact airplane professionally down to the same paint scheme. I am a retired airline pilot with 30, 000 hours who retired at age 65 in 2015, and am currently flying the PC-12NG. My plane is one year older, but other than that, the two are identical. This airplane is a handful flying single pilot, especailly in the weather with no autopilot. I believe than a guy with just a private license flying single pilot is a very unsafe combination. My boss, who owns the Pilatus I fly, WISELY insists I have a copilot any time the plane is flown with passengers and that the copilot, like me, is a professional. My guess is the autopilot kicked off due to turbulence in IMC and this pilot did not have the airmanship skills to hand fly on instruments and suffered from spatial disorientation, which we used to call vertigo.

[NathanBallardSaferFlying]

Thank for the well thought out, non-speculative look at this accident. I very much appreciate the work of the ASI to keep us all safer.

[Ms_Princess_Zelda]

I’m so happy to see this series resuming. Thank you ❤

[aviatr]

It’s worth mentioning that the pilots son died in a motorcycle accident a few years ago. Also important to note that his daughter died two weeks ago. No cause of death given. They buried her the Friday before this crash. There’s a fair chance that his head simply wasn’t in the game.

[sibtainbukhari]

Good to see you are continuing the legacy of Richard McSpadden. RIP Richard

[grumman]

In the flight levels the Pilatus is below gear down speed (indicated). It will be interesting to know if the pilot lowered the gear once he started losing control of his ship. If you can keep the speed “in check” you have a much better chance of regaining control. Thirty plus years in the industry and I would never let my family go around the traffic pattern with a pilot of those credentials.
Flying jets and turboprops in the flight levels is a serious game best left to professionals.

[johncollins]

Well done Mike and ASI. Thank you for continuing this series. It is needed to help us improve our flight safety.

[chrisanderson]

I’m a corporate pilot with about 12, 000 hrs total time of which about 5, 500 are in Pilatus aircraft. About 4, 000 in the PC12 and about 1, 500 in the PC24. There is no finer turboprop or single pilot jet.

This is simply a case of a pilot not being prepared or proficient. He was unable to hand fly the aircraft and relied heavily on the automation of the PC12. His lack of skill cost all onboard dearly.

One last observation is I highly doubt this was a Part 91 flight! Even if the aircraft was leased the pilot should have been at a minimum a Commercial Pilot, not a Private Pilot. More like a 134.5 operation….

[glennweeks]

Thanks for your report. I was a huge fan of this group. I am anxious to hear a thorough report of the flight and ultimate crash of this aircraft. Thanks for making it easy to understand what could have happened.

[neekonsaadat]

Thoughts to the family and friends, thank you for making this analysis

[cbret]

Very good summary Thank you for continuing the series, wonder why they are only in our thoughts and not prayers as well. Prayers to the remaining family, what a rough stretch of life for them.

[dblrplt]

Always use AOPA for a great safety briefing!

[JasonFlorida]

Can we just talk about how terrifying it would be to be flying along... Having a few minutes of petrifying flying maneuvers and then actually witnessing your aircraft breaking up at a very high altitude! Wow! If this doesn't scare you to make sure you fly safe I don't know what will. Be safe and knowledgeable everyday, everyone!

[DrJohn]

Good preliminary review of this tragic accident. It certainly sounds like weather and poor pilot proficiency. Sidenote: I think we've met before during my 27 years as a NASAO member. Keep up the good work with these ASI reports!

[rizzodefrank]

There have been a few losses with pc12 when autopilot clicks off as they do in this plane with light and moderate turbulence. The north carolina loss also had a lot to do with many just dont ever hand fly the thing enough. The pusher is also there as long as you dont interrupt it. Boutique went right up to the pusher in their crash as well as the hunters did in the dakotas. The nice thing is in the higher flight levels you are already near va and gear speed both so if something goes really wrong you are setup for a level attitude recovery even with a good loss of altitude if you did infact activate the pusher. It is agressive and you will lose a couple thousand feet in recovery. The t tail is no friend to a stall whatsoever.

[ourlifeinwyoming]

Although we're in the southeast part of Wyoming, the winds on the ground were strong that day and we had storms as this front moved thru.

[James-lyim]

Richard produced a video on my daughters accident in Burley Idaho
Much to learn as a pilot
RIP all who lost their lives and bless their families and friends.
Been an AOPA member for 25 years. Great organization. Too bad the FAA is a waste of money. They could do a lot more but are and we need that.

[paulwblair]

I was driving through Southern Wyoming right around the time of this crash and encountered some seriously intense thunderstorms. Traffic was slowed to 45mph with some cars electing to pull over.