ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 162716
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| Date: | Thursday 12 December 2013 |
| Time: | 11:55 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-24-250 Comanche |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N8037P |
| MSN: | 24-3284 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1962 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 4087 hours |
| Engine model: | Lycoming TIO-540-C1B5 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Porter Creek area, East of Collbran, Colorado -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Executive |
| Departure airport: | Mack, CO (10CO) |
| Mack, CO (10CO) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The pilot was flying the airplane with two passengers on board to search for lost cattle in mountainous terrain. Witnesses observed the airplane maneuvering at a low altitude. The airplane was reported overdue, and the wreckage was subsequently located in a sparsely wooded area. An onboard GPS unit recorded the accident flight and depicted the airplane flying several north and south legs at altitudes ranging between 300 and 500 feet above ground level before the recording ended. The airplane impacted terrain in an extreme nose-low attitude with lateral distortion of the empennage. A postaccident examination of the airframe and engine did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. The wreckage evidence indicated that the pilot likely failed to maintain adequate airspeed while maneuvering at a low altitude, which resulted in an inadvertent aerodynamic stall/spin and subsequent impact with terrain.
Toxicology testing revealed the presence of tetrahydrocannabinol in the lung and tetrahydrocannabinol carboxylic acid in the liver and lung, which suggested the recent use of marijuana; however, insufficient evidence existed to determine whether the pilot was impaired by its use at the time of the accident.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed while maneuvering at a low altitude, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall/spin and subsequent impact with terrain.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
FAA register: http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=8037P
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 13-Dec-2013 17:23 | gerard57 | Added |
| 13-Dec-2013 17:25 | harro | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Source, Narrative] |
| 13-Dec-2013 17:27 | harro | Updated [Registration, Narrative] |
| 13-Dec-2013 17:28 | harro | Updated [Departure airport, Destination airport] |
| 13-Dec-2013 17:46 | Alpine Flight | Updated [Cn, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport] |
| 13-Dec-2013 23:03 | Geno | Updated [Departure airport, Destination airport, Source] |
| 21-Dec-2013 02:04 | Geno | Updated [Time, Phase, Nature, Source, Damage] |
| 09-Sep-2014 18:28 | Aerossurance | Updated [Nature, Source, Narrative] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:28 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 29-Nov-2017 09:28 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
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