Piper matrix down near Bakersfield

Damn

This was not a great weekend to be flying, especially around the mountains. We drove to Vegas instead of flying (speaking of "go" and "no go" decisions) and the weather looked insidious.. lots of lenticulars and very high winds just driving on the ground. Winds aloft, from what I could see, where 50-80 knots. Plenty of clouds with many layers too..

Sad. Hope to learn more details and may they rest in peace.
 
To my knowledge, this is the first Matrix fatal to date.
 
Yeah it looked down right apocalyptic from the ground. Foreflight had 77 knots at 9K over Palmdale and something absurd like 120 at 12K

But winds aside it was also cold with plenty of clouds up there.. do some "sorta vfr" flying and pick up some ice.. combined with a 100 knot downdraft.. things get bad real quick

No.
Thank.
You.
 
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