ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 45504
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| Date: | Thursday 4 July 2002 |
| Time: | 14:28 |
| Type: |  Wag-Aero Super Cuby |
| Owner/operator: | Lawrence E. Erie |
| Registration: | N43Z |
| MSN: | 588 |
| Engine model: | Lycoming O-235 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Cantwell , AK -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Unknown |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Wasilla, AK (4A1) |
| Wasilla, AK (4A1) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On July 4, 2002, at 1428 Alaska daylight time, a tundra tire-equipped experimental/homebuilt, Zawada Super Cuby airplane, N43Z, sustained substantial damage following an in-flight loss of control and subsequent impact with mountainous terrain, about 35 miles west of Cantwell, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country personal flight when the accident occurred. The private certificated pilot, and the sole passenger, received fatal injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the airplane's point of departure, and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated at a private airstrip, located about 8 miles southwest of Wasilla, Alaska, at an estimated time of 1200.
The private certificated pilot departed with one passenger on a cross-country flight from a private airstrip in a tundra tire-equipped experimental/homebuilt airplane. Family members reported that the purpose of the flight was to show the passenger some Alaskan scenery. When the airplane did not return, the flight was reported overdue. Search personnel located the wreckage near the summit of a mountain pass at 5,000 feet msl, four days later. The airplane struck an area of upsloping rock and snow-covered terrain, in a near vertical attitude, and came to rest within a few feet of the initial ground scar. A postaccident examination of the airplane did not reveal any mechanical malfunctions. A postmortem toxicological examination of the pilot disclosed high levels of tramadol, a prescription painkiller, and paroxetine, a prescription antidepressant. Additionally, the toxicology report was consistent with the use of at least one other prescription painkiller. The pilot had been under treatment for neck and back pain with multiple medications. The pilot's performance and judgment were likely to have been impaired by the effects of the tramadol, particularly in combination with a second prescription painkiller.
Probable Cause: The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed which resulted in an inadvertent stall, and subsequent collision with terrain. A contributing factor was the pilot's impairment from the effects of prescription painkilling drugs.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20020724X01197&key=1
Location
Images:
Photo: NTSB
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 28-Oct-2008 00:45 | ASN archive | Added |
| 14-Aug-2010 09:56 | TB | Updated [Aircraft type, Other fatalities, Narrative] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:24 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 09-Dec-2017 16:53 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 08-Apr-2024 19:13 | Captain Adam | Updated [Narrative, Photo] |
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