Flight Design GMBH CTLS accident near Queens, New York, November 5, 2015

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

The noninstrument-rated private pilot departed on a cross-country flight in night visual meteorological conditions in the light sport airplane. After takeoff, the pilot leveled the airplane at an altitude about 1,400 ft mean sea level (msl) and continued toward the destination airport for about 30 minutes until he requested and was cleared by air traffic control to fly along a coastal shoreline at 400 ft msl, under the 500-ft shelf of Class Bravo airspace. About 1 minute after the pilot was cleared to descend, at an altitude of 700 ft and 0.2 nautical mile from the lateral limits of the Class Bravo shelf, the airplane began a 90° right turn. The airplane deviated from the course to the destination and did not level off at 400 ft, as requested. The airplane continued on a southeasterly heading and descended to 200 ft before radar contact was lost. There were no radio communications or other indications of distress from the airplane before the loss of radar contact. A witness reported seeing the airplane descending at a 45° angle into the water. A pilot involved with the search and recovery of the airplane classified the conditions as "pitch black." Examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or abnormalities that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot was neither qualified nor proficient to conduct the flight by reference to instruments, and had likely used lights on the shoreline as a ground reference in the dark light conditions. However, when he turned away from the shoreline to continue his descent, likely to avoid entering the Class Bravo airspace, the pilot did not have adequate external visual cues by which to maintain attitude and altitude; he likely became spatially disoriented, and lost control of the airplane. Although toxicological testing was positive for hydroxyzine, an antihistamine, the drug was detected in muscle tissue and not in blood indicating that it likely had no impairing effect.

The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.

Other NTSB records under N622BT the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time