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Inexperienced cessna 172 pilot encountered unintended flight into IMC and suffered spatial disorientation. ATC provides an assist.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 827617 |
| Time | |
| Date | 200903 |
| Local Time Of Day | 0601-1200 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Environment | |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | Skyhawk 172/Cutlass 172 |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 91 |
| Flight Phase | Climb |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Pilot Flying Single Pilot |
| Qualification | Flight Attendant Current Flight Crew Private |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 16 Flight Crew Total 128 Flight Crew Type 420 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Inflight Event / Encounter VFR In IMC Inflight Event / Encounter CFTT / CFIT |
Narrative:
Visibility was 4 miles; but as I approached rising terrain under flight following; the combination of haze and clouds had the effect of causing horizontal visibility to appear much lower than indicated. I climbed aggressively to remain out of the clouds and reach blue sky. The controller called to provide vectors to help me avoid traffic; but due to the high workload of the situation; I found myself overloaded to an extent that is not typical for me. After some initial confusion; I started a right turn as requested; but it may not have registered on the controller's equipment yet as he questioned if I was turning right. This caused me to become more confused; as I took this to mean that I should have turned left to the heading (although I had been turning the correct way). Still unnerved from my first real encounter with low visibility haze; I was not thinking clearly. I should have said 'unable;' rather than to try and comply; but I had my hands full just flying the plane and remaining VFR. It felt not unlike regressing to a student pilot for a few brief moments; where all I could handle was flying the plane. I apologized to the controller and; fortunately; the rest of the flight went well as I returned to my regular self. As a remedy; when appropriate; I am not going to be shy to say 'unable' in the future and I will finish my instrument rating as soon as possible (I went for a lesson the every next day).
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: Inexperienced Cessna 172 pilot encountered unintended flight into IMC and suffered spatial disorientation. ATC provides an assist.
Narrative: Visibility was 4 miles; but as I approached rising terrain under flight following; the combination of haze and clouds had the effect of causing horizontal visibility to appear much lower than indicated. I climbed aggressively to remain out of the clouds and reach blue sky. The Controller called to provide vectors to help me avoid traffic; but due to the high workload of the situation; I found myself overloaded to an extent that is not typical for me. After some initial confusion; I started a right turn as requested; but it may not have registered on the Controller's equipment yet as he questioned if I was turning right. This caused me to become more confused; as I took this to mean that I should have turned left to the heading (although I had been turning the correct way). Still unnerved from my first real encounter with low visibility haze; I was not thinking clearly. I should have said 'unable;' rather than to try and comply; but I had my hands full just flying the plane and remaining VFR. It felt not unlike regressing to a student pilot for a few brief moments; where all I could handle was flying the plane. I apologized to the Controller and; fortunately; the rest of the flight went well as I returned to my regular self. As a remedy; when appropriate; I am not going to be shy to say 'unable' in the future and I will finish my Instrument Rating as soon as possible (I went for a lesson the every next day).
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.