History of Flight
On August 1, 2009, about 1900 eastern daylight time, a Beech B90, registration N1999G, was substantially damaged during a skydive flight near West Point, Virginia. The aircraft was registered to Fayard Enterprises LLC and operated by Rampart Aviation, Inc. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 skydive flight from Middle Peninsula Regional Airport (FYJ), West Point, Virginia. The pilot and five skydivers were not injured, while one skydiver was killed.
The pilot stated that before takeoff, fourteen skydivers boarded the airplane. The flight departed and climbed to 14,000 feet, where a group of skydivers deplaned. At that point, he felt a large thud and a shudder in the flight controls that lasted about 3 seconds. The airplane yawed to the left and pitched up, then the flight control feel returned to normal.
According to a student jumper on his 26th jump, after the group deplaned, his instructor positioned himself at the cabin door opening facing inside the cabin, and the student came in front of him. The student jumper reported putting his hands on the instructor's chest and, one count before exiting, noticed the instructor's reserve parachute handle was "out." He told the instructor to stop and tried to grab him from the back to bring him back into the airplane. The instructor was "…ripped out of the plane..." and the student watched him hit the tail, then fall away. He watched the instructor's reserve parachute open and was then told to jump solo.
One of the tandem instructors who was next to exit reported that the accident instructor positioned himself outside the airplane facing the front and appeared to start his exit count. The tandem instructor sensed confusion between the accident instructor and student jumper, and the accident instructor stopped the count on "set." He noticed the two briefly communicating and the accident instructor trying to grab the plane. The student jumper appeared to reach out to assist and reached in the area of the accident instructor's left side, near his reserve parachute ripcord. At that point, the accident instructor was "violently pulled from the door and I felt him violently strike the tail." The remaining jumpers departed the airplane.
The pilot further reported that after the remaining skydivers exited, he turned around and noticed a large dent on the leading edge of the left horizontal stabilizer. He descended at a slow rate and landed without further incident.
A search for the accident instructor was immediately initiated, and his body was located the following morning. According to the Virginia State Police Report, the instructor was found suspended in a tree by a white colored parachute. The report also indicated that a video recording of the event, reviewed in slow motion, revealed the student jumper pulled the reserve parachute D-ring.
Meteorological Information
A surface observation weather report taken at Middle Peninsula Regional Airport at 1902, approximately 2 minutes after the accident, indicated visibility of 10 statute miles and clear skies. The temperature and dew point were 28 and 21 degrees Celsius, respectively, and the altimeter setting was 30.03 inches of mercury.
Wreckage and Impact Information
Examination of the airplane by an FAA inspector revealed substantial damage to the left horizontal stabilizer.
Medical and Pathological Information
A postmortem examination of the skydive instructor was performed by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, Richmond, Virginia. The cause of death was listed as "Cervical Spine Fracture at C6 due to Blunt Force Injury of Head and Neck." Forensic toxicology performed on specimens of the skydive instructor by the Department of Forensic Science, Commonwealth of Virginia, reported negative results in the blood and vitreous fluid for tested drugs and volatiles.