History of Flight
On August 9, 2015, about 2325 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA32R-300 airplane, registration N43829, was substantially damaged when it struck trees and terrain east of Harbor Springs Airport (MGN), Harbor Springs, Michigan. The private pilot was fatally injured. The aircraft was registered to the Tuskegee Airman National Historical Museum and operated by a private individual under 14 CFR Part 91 as a personal flight. Dark night visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and the flight operated without a flight plan. The flight originated from Coleman A Young Municipal Airport (DET), Detroit, Michigan, about 2000.
According to the Emmet County Sheriff's Department and colleagues of the pilot, he was flying to MGN for a conference. He communicated via text message with a colleague, indicating he would arrive around 2325. The wreckage was located at 0730 on August 10 by employees of Emmet Brick & Block. The initial impact point was at the top of a tree several hundred feet east of the main wreckage. No witnesses to the impact were identified, though several people reported seeing or hearing a low-flying airplane around the time of the accident. The pilot was not receiving air traffic control services.
Personnel Information
The pilot, age 58, held a private pilot certificate with an airplane single-engine land rating, reissued on January 28, 2015, and first issued on July 17, 2009. He held a special issuance third-class medical certificate dated August 5, 2014, with limitations requiring corrective lenses for near and distant vision and validity through August 31, 2015. On his medical application, he reported 380 total hours, with 14 hours in the previous six months. His personal logbook, recovered from the wreckage, contained entries from November 10, 2006, through July 22, 2015, indicating no less than 406.9 total hours in single-engine airplanes, including 78.4 hours in the accident airplane and 95.5 hours in high-performance/complex airplanes. He had logged 19.5 hours at night, with the last night flight on November 8, 2013. No night experience in the accident airplane nor any prior flights to MGN were recorded in the logbook.
Aircraft Information
The accident airplane, a Piper PA32R-300 (serial number 32R-7780527), was manufactured in 1977 and held a standard airworthiness certificate. It was powered by an Avco Lycoming IO-540-K1G5D engine rated at 300 horsepower at 2,700 rpm, equipped with a Hartzell three-blade variable-pitch propeller. The airplane was registered to the Tuskegee Airman National Historical Museum, owned by the U.S. government, and operated by the pilot. Maintenance was conducted under an annual inspection program; an annual inspection was completed on July 8, 2015, at an airframe total time of 4,825.7 hours (tachometer 3,648.5). On August 6, 2015, the vacuum pump was replaced. The airplane had flown about 16.8 hours since the last inspection, with a total airframe time of 4,842.5 hours.
The Tuskegee Airman National Historical Museum received the airplane from the Michigan State Agency for Surplus Property for training juveniles in piloting and maintenance. The five-year property transfer contract prohibited renting or personal use; during the restriction period, the airplane remained U.S. government property.
Meteorological Information
The closest official weather observation station was at MGN, 1 nautical mile west of the accident site. The 2335 METAR reported wind calm, visibility 10 miles, scattered clouds at 4,100 feet, broken clouds at 5,000 and 6,000 feet, temperature 20°C, dew point 19°C, and altimeter 29.94 inches. Sunset was at 2057 EDT, with the end of civil twilight at 2130 EDT. The moon rose at 0207 EDT and set at 1711 EDT, in a waning crescent phase with 23% illumination.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The accident site was in forested terrain east of the airport at an elevation of 704 feet msl. The airplane impacted on a magnetic heading of 280 degrees. The initial impact point was characterized by deciduous and coniferous trees; the left wing tip was found in a tree top, with debris extending westward to the main wreckage. The airplane came to rest oriented eastward on a 45-degree uphill slope to the south. The main wreckage included the engine, propeller, fuselage, and empennage. The right wing separated and lay adjacent to the north; the fuselage was crushed and twisted. The engine, instrument panel, and nose landing gear were twisted, with the engine on its left side. All three propeller blades remained attached, showing chordwise scratching and leading edge polishing; two blades were twisted and bent.
Cockpit settings included: Kollsman window 29.93, fuel selector on right tank, gear handle up, flaps at first notch (10 degrees), tachometer 3665.3, Hobbs 1204.2, mixture full forward, propeller full forward, throttle full forward, alternate air door closed. The right wing flap separated and was buckled; the left wing separated with landing gear down and locked. The empennage showed left stabilator leading edge crushing with embedded tree bark, trim tab down, and about 7 threads on the stabilator trim (slight nose up). Impact damage precluded full-range control movement. No preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures were found that would have precluded normal operation.
Medical and Pathological Information
An autopsy performed on August 11, 2015, by Sparrow Forensic Pathology concluded that the cause of death was multiple injuries. Toxicological tests at the FAA's Civil Aerospace Medical Institute were negative for carbon monoxide and ethanol. Testing of cavity blood and urine revealed amlodipine, a calcium channel blocker used to treat hypertension. The pilot's July 2014 medical application noted he was using medication for hypertension with no side effects.