History of Flight
On June 5, 2014, about 1923 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 172M, registration N1186U, collided with trees while maneuvering at low altitude near Laytonville, California. The pilot/owner was operating the airplane under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The local personal flight departed Laytonville at an undetermined time. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed.
Witnesses reported that the airplane was at low level and made several passes over an open field. During another pass, they observed the right wing make contact with a tree and separate from the airplane. The airplane came to rest in a wooded area.
Personnel Information
The 63-year-old pilot held a private pilot certificate with a rating for airplane single-engine land and a third-class medical certificate issued on August 7, 2012, with the limitation that he must have glasses for near vision. No personal flight records were located. According to FAA airmen medical records, the pilot reported a total time of 590 hours with 0 hours logged in the previous 6 months.
Aircraft Information
The airplane was a Cessna 172M, serial number 17266887. No logbooks were made available for examination. At the wreckage examination, the tachometer read 1,194.4, and the Hobbs hour meter read 890.5. The engine was a Lycoming O-360-A4A that had been altered to an O-360-A4M, serial number L-30908-36A.
Medical and Pathological Information
A postmortem examination conducted by the Office of the Coroner – Mendocino County reported the cause of death as blunt force injuries. Toxicology testing identified 217 mg/dL of ethanol in the iliac blood. Additional testing found: 274 mg/dL ethanol in urine, 237 mg/dL ethanol in vitreous, and 172 mg/dL ethanol in blood (heart). The FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute found no carbon monoxide or tested drugs; cyanide tests were not performed.
On his most recent medical exam dated August 7, 2012, the pilot reported a history of a driving under the influence arrest on March 22, 2012, and a previous alcohol-related arrest in 1990. The autopsy also identified coronary artery disease with up to 40% narrowing of the proximal left anterior descending artery and diffuse 25 to 50% narrowing of the mid portion of the right coronary artery.
Wreckage Examination
Investigators from the NTSB, FAA, Cessna, and Lycoming examined the wreckage at Air Transport, Phoenix, Arizona, on July 16, 2014. The airframe and engine were examined with no mechanical anomalies identified.