Accident Van's RV-6 N650RV,
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ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 121289
 
This record has been locked for editing.

Date:Friday 11 March 2011
Time:09:00
Type:Silhouette image of generic RV6 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Van's RV-6
Owner/operator:Private
Registration: N650RV
MSN: 23971
Engine model:Lycoming O-360-A1A
Fatalities:Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage: Substantial
Category:Accident
Location:Grand Canyon, AZ -   United States of America
Phase: En route
Nature:Private
Departure airport:Tusayan, AZ (KGCN)
Destination airport:
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
Local law enforcement representatives reported that the pilot was involved in an argument with his wife the day before the accident. They further reported that early in the morning on the day of the accident, the pilot told an individual, referred to by the police as his girlfriend, that he was going to kill himself. About 0615, the pilot was seen at the airport where the airplane was based, and, by the time that the airport's air traffic control tower began operation at 0630, the pilot had already departed in the airplane. The pilot flew to another airport, landed, purchased 10 gallons of fuel, and departed about 0820. According to recorded radar track data, the airplane flew northwest for about 10 minutes before radar contact was lost. A search was conducted; however, the airplane was not immediately located and was classified as missing until May 21, 2015, when hikers found the wreckage. Postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed damage consistent with controlled flight into terrain. The pilot's remains were located in the wreckage. According to the autopsy report, the pilot's cause of death was multiple blunt force injuries with the manner of death being suicide.


Probable Cause: The pilot's intentional flight into terrain.

Accident investigation:
cover
  
Investigating agency: NTSB
Report number: WPR11FA490
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 5 years
Download report: Final report

Sources:

NTSB

Location

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
23-Mar-2011 15:58 gerard57 Added
27-Mar-2011 06:48 gerard57 Updated [Source, Narrative]
30-Sep-2011 16:16 Dr. John Smith Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Source, Damage, Narrative]
30-Sep-2011 16:16 Dr. John Smith Updated [Aircraft type, Source]
30-Sep-2011 16:19 Dr. John Smith Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Source, Narrative]
11-Mar-2012 15:41 Geno Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Cn, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
25-Jun-2016 20:23 junior sjc Updated [Aircraft type, Narrative]
21-Dec-2016 19:25 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]
28-Feb-2017 16:44 PiperOnslaught Updated [Source, Narrative]
06-Apr-2017 17:38 junior sjc Updated [Location, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
27-Nov-2017 16:46 ASN Update Bot Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]

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