Accident Details
On January 13, 2010, at 1656 eastern standard time, an experimental, amateur-built Foster Glasair III, registration N540WF, sustained substantial damage after colliding with a high tension power line during final approach to runway 36 at Waterbury-Oxford Airport (OXC) in Oxford, Connecticut. The certificated private pilot was killed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a visual flight rules (VFR) flight plan was filed for the personal flight, which originated from Montgomery County Airport (GAI) in Gaithersburg, Maryland, at approximately 1515.
According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records, at 1650 the pilot established radio contact with the OXC air traffic control tower, reporting a position 15 miles west of the airport. The controller instructed the pilot to report when "midfield downwind" for runway 36. At 1653, the controller requested the pilot's current position; the pilot responded he was 8 miles west. At 1654, the controller indicated he believed he had the airplane in sight and directed the pilot to proceed to and report a 2-mile left base, which the pilot acknowledged. The controller then provided traffic information about another aircraft on a left downwind leg and stated the accident airplane would follow that aircraft. At 1656, the controller cleared the pilot to land and noted the preceding airplane was on short final with no traffic factor. No further communications were received.
Examination of the accident site by an FAA inspector revealed that the airplane impacted a high tension power line approximately 200 feet below the precision approach path indicator (PAPI) lights for runway 36. After contacting the power line, the airplane traveled about 400 feet before striking the ground near the approach end of the runway.
Pilot Information
The pilot, age 50, held a private pilot certificate with a rating for airplane single-engine land, issued August 21, 2005. His most recent FAA third-class airman medical certificate was issued December 24, 2008, with no restrictions. A review of the pilot's logbook by the FAA inspector indicated a total flight experience of 278 hours in all aircraft, with 3.6 hours in the preceding 90 days. He had accumulated 28.7 hours in the Glasair III, and his most recent biannual flight review was recorded on July 9, 2009. The pilot had a total of 7.2 hours of night experience, with his last night flight completed on September 11, 2005.
Aircraft Information
The accident airplane was a two-seat, low-wing, retractable-gear, single-engine experimental amateur-built Glasair III, serial number 001, with an airworthiness date of March 1, 2008. It was powered by a Lycoming IO-540-KIA5, 300-horsepower engine. The aircraft logbook was not recovered, so no determination could be made of its most recent condition inspection or total hours of operation.
Wreckage examination revealed the landing gear selector switch was in the down position but bent. Saw-tooth markings consistent with wire strike were observed on both main landing gear, but not on the nose gear. Both main landing gear tires remained inflated. Scuff marks were observed on the outside of the left main tire and on the tread of the right main tire. The flap handle was between the first and second extended position, and the switch was broken. The engine was intact, facing south, with the nose gear assembly attached but buckled underneath. There was no indication of cylinder failure, and push rods remained intact. The firewall remained attached to the engine. The propeller separated from the engine, with leading edge damage and 1/2-inch gouges near the tips of the blades. No evidence of preimpact mechanical failure or malfunction was found.
Weather and Other Data
Recorded weather at OXC at 1645 included winds calm, visibility 10 statute miles, sky clear, temperature minus 3°C, dew point minus 11°C, and altimeter 30.12 inches of mercury. Sunset occurred at 1645, with a waning crescent moon (2% illuminated). Civil twilight ended at 1716.
An autopsy of the pilot performed on January 14, 2010, by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, State of Connecticut, found no carbon monoxide or cyanide in blood, no ethanol in vitreous, and no drugs detected in urine via forensic toxicology by the FAA.
The airplane was equipped with electronic devices including a Garmin GPSMAP 496, an Electronic International MVP-50 engine data display, an altitude encoder, and a CD ignition system. Neither the altitude encoder nor the CD ignition system recorded data. The GPS data, successfully downloaded, plotted the flight path and showed the airplane descending below the approach path while on final approach to runway 36. The MVP-50 provided data consistent with continuous engine operation to impact. On January 26, 2010, the FAA performed a flight test of the PAPI glide slope to runway 36, with satisfactory results.