ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 166774
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.
| Date: | Thursday 5 June 2014 |
| Time: | 19:23 |
| Type: |  Cessna 172M Skyhawk |
| Owner/operator: | Gillespie Kenneth H Trustee |
| Registration: | N1186U |
| MSN: | 17266887 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1976 |
| Engine model: | Lycoming O-360-A4M |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Eel River, W of Laytonville, CA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Laytonville, CA |
| Laytonville, CA | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The private pilot was conducting a local personal flight. Witnesses reported that they observed the airplane making several low passes over an open field. During the last pass, they observed the airplane’s right wing contact a tree and then separate from the airplane. The airplane subsequently came to rest in a wooded area.
According to the autopsy report, the pilot had coronary artery maximum occlusion of 50 percent, and there was no evidence of preexisting heart muscle scarring. This amount of occlusion likely would not have caused acute symptoms and would not have impaired the pilot’s judgment; therefore, the pilot’s coronary artery disease likely did not impair his ability to operate the airplane or contribute to the accident.
Toxicology reports identified ethanol in the pilot’s heart blood, iliac blood, vitreous, and urine. The distribution of the ethanol in the pilot’s tissue was consistent with ingestion, not postmortem production. Although there was some variation, all of the pilot’s tissues tested positive for ethanol well above 0.040 gram per deciliter, which indicates that the pilot had ingested sufficient ethanol to impair his ability to safety operate the airplane.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s impairment due to alcohol ingestion, which resulted in his failure to maintain clearance from trees during a low-altitude flyby.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
FAA register: http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=1186U
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 06-Jun-2014 19:45 | Geno | Added |
| 07-Jun-2014 02:45 | Geno | Updated [Location, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 18-Jun-2014 23:22 | Geno | Updated [Time, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:28 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 29-Nov-2017 15:02 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:
| ASN Home | Send Correction / Feedback |
| FSF Home | Disclaimer | Copyright |
| Contact Us | Privacy Policy |
| Press / Media |
CONNECT WITH US:
©2024 Flight Safety Foundation