Accident Overview
On January 20, 2014, at about 1540 Pacific standard time, an Ercoupe 415C, registration N2076H, collided with trees near Poulsbo, Washington. The airplane had departed Auburn Municipal Airport, Auburn, Washington, about 1440 on a local flight under visual meteorological conditions. No flight plan was filed. The commercial pilot/owner was the sole occupant. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the forward fuselage and both wings. The pilot was able to call 911 at about 1545, stating he had been involved in an accident. Emergency personnel found him seated outside the inverted airplane. Due to injuries, he could not recall the circumstances. He died 16 days later from complications of the injuries.
Pilot Information
The 70-year-old pilot held a certified flight instructor certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land and instrument airplane. His most recent FAA third-class medical certificate was issued in August 2008 with a limitation for glasses for near vision. At the time of his last medical application, he reported 1,837 total flight hours with 28 hours in the previous 6 months. No personal flight records were located.
Medical and Pathological Information
The pilot first obtained a third-class medical certificate in 1964 and routinely renewed it with the only limitation being corrective lenses. In 1998 he reported hypertension treated with medication. Subsequent medical certificates were issued. In 2006 and 2008, he reported additional medications for high cholesterol. In August 2010, he reported hypertension and low platelet count due to myelodysplastic syndrome. The FAA denied his medical certificate in October 2010. A request for reconsideration was denied in November 2010, with the FAA asking for evidence of improved platelet count. No further documents were in his file. After the accident, he was hospitalized with pulmonary contusions and multiple rib fractures. He required ventilator support and developed acute respiratory distress syndrome, kidney failure, and infections. He died 16 days later. Toxicology tests on admission blood identified Amlodipine (for hypertension), Midazolam, and Ondansetron (both administered during resuscitation).
Engine Examination
The four-cylinder normally aspirated Continental engine had a 4-quart oil sump. Examination revealed the combination oil filler cap/dipstick was not installed in the filler neck; it was found loose in the engine compartment with its gasket and locking tabs intact. The filler neck's locking lugs were intact. The engine compartment and belly were coated in brown oil, obscured from the pilot's view. The engine had seized due to oil exhaustion; fragments of metallic components were found in the crankcase, and the camshaft and connecting rod for cylinder No. 1 had failed.
GPS Data
The Garmin GPSMap 295 receiver contained track data for the entire flight. The airplane departed Auburn, flew west across Commencement Bay, then north to Jefferson County International Airport, Port Townsend, where it performed a touch-and-go landing at 1521. On climbout, it turned south towards Poulsbo, arriving at 1538 at 1,759 ft msl. It then descended to 876 ft over 80 seconds, then made a descending 180-degree left turn to the last recorded position at 374 ft. The airplane was found at elevation 374 ft, having struck tree tops before reaching a clearing.