ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 140145
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| Date: | Tuesday 29 November 2011 |
| Time: | 18:24 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-31-310 Navajo B |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N6485L |
| MSN: | 31-449 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1969 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 7024 hours |
| Engine model: | Lycoming TIO-540 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Minor |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Lakefront Airport (NEW/KNEW), New Orleans, LA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Ferry/positioning |
| Departure airport: | Stephenville-Clark Field, TX (SEP/KSEP) |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On November 29, 2011, at 1824 central standard time, a Piper Aircraft, Inc., PA-31 (Navajo), N6485L, impacted obstructions during an emergency landing at Lakefront Airport (NEW), New Orleans, Louisiana. During cruise flight the commercial pilot became incapacitated and died. The passenger suffered minor injuries. The airplane sustained minor damage. The airplane was registered to a private individual and operated by another private individual as a personal flight under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated about 1547 from Stephenville Airport (SEP), Stephenville, Texas.
The pilot became unresponsive and died during cruise flight and the airplane departed controlled flight. The passenger, who had no previous pilot experience, was able to gain control and maneuvered the airplane for a night crash landing at an airport. Witnesses at the airport observed the lights of the airplane moving erratically and saw it impact the runway, strike several obstructions, and come to rest upright in a grassy area next to the runway. An emergency medical team was unable to resuscitate the pilot and he was declared deceased. The postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.
The pilot had severe cardiac disease and was using medications to treat both hypertension and coronary artery disease. These were medical conditions about which he misled the Federal Aviation Administration and would have been disqualifying for a pilot medical certificate. In addition, based on the toxicology testing, the pilot was using methamphetamine at the time of the crash. Methamphetamine acutely causes increased heart rate and elevated blood pressure which increases myocardial oxygen demand. It may also directly cause coronary vasospasm. It is very likely that both the pilot's severe coronary artery disease and acute methamphetamine intoxication contributed to the pilot's sudden cardiac death during flight.
Probable Cause: The pilot's fatal cardiac event, which resulted in the inflight loss of control of the airplane. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's use of impairing medications and operation of the airplane with disqualifying medical conditions.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
FAA register: 2. FAA: http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?omni=Home-N-Number&nNumberTxt=6485L
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 29-Nov-2011 20:00 | RobertMB | Added |
| 29-Nov-2011 21:05 | RobertMB | Updated [Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 30-Nov-2011 02:23 | RobertMB | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Damage, Narrative] |
| 30-Nov-2011 06:32 | RobertMB | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn] |
| 30-Nov-2011 08:46 | Geno | Updated [Location, Source] |
| 13-Dec-2011 00:00 | Geno | Updated [Time, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:26 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 21-Oct-2017 20:41 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 27-Nov-2017 17:24 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 02-Jul-2023 21:45 | Captain Adam | Updated [[Time, Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]] |
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