N281MC

According to the pilot, the airplane owner and he were returning from a cross country flight. As they approached their destination airport, the pilot received a radio call from an airplane that reported leaving the pattern at the destination airport due to the winds. The pilot continued his approach to land on runway 34; however, he later aborted his landing due to strong crosswinds. After obtaining current winds from the airport’s universal communications frequency, he elected to attempt a landing on runway 22. After the airplane crossed the airport perimeter fence it was struck by a gust of wind. The airplane’s nose impacted the ground and the airplane subsequently skidded down the left side of the runway before coming to rest. A post-crash fire consumed much of the wreckage with the exception of the empennage and outboard sections of both wings. According to a local weather observation facility, the recorded winds at the time of the accident were from 260 degrees at 18 knots gusting to 26 knots.