History of Flight
On February 14, 2012, at approximately 1630 central standard time, a Piper PA-28-180, registration N4824L, impacted trees and terrain while maneuvering near Osborn, Missouri. The pilot and passenger sustained fatal injuries, and the airplane was substantially damaged. The flight was conducted under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight, departing from East Kansas City Airport (3GV) in Grain Valley, Missouri, at an undetermined time. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed.
A witness residing at the property where the accident occurred reported that her husband informed her a friend would be flying by. She heard a small airplane operating nearby and went outside. The airplane approached from the southeast, banked around the house, and passed in front just east of the trees. It then circled behind the house and made a second pass, during which the witness heard it hit two trees before striking the ground and cartwheeling into a field north of the house. The witness recorded the airplane on her cellular telephone, showing it at low level, just above treetop level, traveling from south to north before initiating a right turn; the accident sequence was not captured.
Personnel Information
The pilot, aged 68, held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land, multiengine land, single-engine seaplane, glider, and instrument airplane, issued September 25, 2008. He was issued a third-class airman medical certificate on December 27, 2010, with a restriction for glasses for near vision. According to his flight logbooks, the pilot had accumulated 5,798 hours of total flight experience. His most recent flight review under 14 CFR Part 61.56 was completed on January 4, 2011.
Aircraft Information
The accident aircraft was a Piper PA-28-180, serial number 28-4166, a four-place, low-wing, single-engine airplane with tricycle landing gear. It was powered by a 180-horsepower Lycoming O-360 four-cylinder reciprocating engine. The most recent annual inspection was completed on July 8, 2011; total airframe time was not recorded in the logbook entry for that date. The previous annual inspection was on June 12, 2010, with total airframe time of 1,876.27 hours.
Meteorological Information
Weather conditions recorded at 1653 by the Rosecrans Memorial Airport ASOS, St. Joseph, Missouri, about 25 miles west of the accident site, included wind from 180 degrees at 6 knots, visibility 10 miles, broken clouds at 11,000 feet above ground level, temperature 7°C, dew point 1°C, and altimeter setting 29.86 inches of mercury.
Wreckage and Impact
The airplane struck trees and an open agricultural field adjacent to a house. A broken tree limb was found at an estimated height of 25 feet above the ground. The main wreckage came to rest approximately 350 feet north of the last tree impacted. The right wing separated at the root, with the flap and aileron attached; the outboard 5 feet of the wing was crushed rearward, and a semi-circular indentation consistent with tree impact was observed about one foot from the wingtip. The remainder of the aircraft came to rest inverted. The left wing was partially separated and lay parallel to the bottom of the fuselage. Tail surfaces remained attached and appeared undamaged. The cabin section was partially consumed by a post-impact fire, while the engine and propeller remained attached. Examination of the control system confirmed continuity from the cockpit to the tail surfaces; aileron control cable breaks exhibited overstress signatures. No evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation was found.
Medical and Pathological Information
An autopsy performed at the First Call Morgue in Kansas City, Kansas, on February 16, 2012, attributed the pilot's death to injuries sustained in the accident. Toxicology testing by the FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute detected 2.31 µg/ml of cyanide in the pilot's blood, consistent with post mortem diffusion resulting from the post-impact fire. All other tests were negative for substances in the screening profile.