History of Flight
On September 5, 2015, about 1408 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 310H, N1099Q, impacted mountainous terrain near Silverton, Colorado. The private pilot, a pilot-rated passenger, and two passengers were fatally injured. The airplane was destroyed by impact forces. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot as a 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. Instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan had been filed. The pilot was not using air traffic control (ATC) services.
The flight departed from Flagstaff Pulliam Airport (FLG), Flagstaff, Arizona, about 1150 and was destined for Tradewind Airport (TDW), Amarillo, Texas.
A fuel receipt from Big Bear City Airport (L35), Big Bear, California, showed that 20.04 gallons of fuel was purchased for the airplane on September 4, 2015.
The pilot's daughter stated that the airplane was kept at L35 during the summer and afterward at Barstow-Daggett Airport (DAG), Daggett, California. She said that her father departed from L35 on September 5, 2015, about 0615 PDT, and arrived at DAG about 0630 PDT to pick up the passengers. He was then going to fly to Amarillo, Texas, following Interstate 40, where they were going to have dinner and then return the same day. She said that her father did not call her after he refueled and departed Flagstaff and that she called for help on September 6 because she had not heard from him. She said that there was another pilot aboard and that they had a GPS. She said that her father did not know anyone in Colorado or Montana.
A part-time Unicom operator at L35 said that the pilot talked about conducting the flight about 1 week before the accident. The pilot asked "a lot of different pilots to go along as copilot" and asked him to go on the flight. The Unicom operator did not know what time the pilot departed on September 5, but "it was pretty early in the morning" when the pilot left to pick up passengers. The Unicom operator stated that the pilot purchased the airplane "not too long ago," that the airplane radios were "very old," and that the "instruments were not all that good."
The pilot's initial contact with an air traffic control (ATC) facility on the day of the accident occurred during a visual approach to FLG. A re-recording of radio transmissions between the pilot and an FLG air traffic controller between 1011 and 1038 was provided. During this communication, the pilot initially identified himself incorrectly as a Piper Comanche and later corrected it. The controller provided weather information and cleared the airplane to land. After landing, the airplane taxied to the fuel pumps.
A fixed-base operator (FBO) employee at FLG stated that, during the airplane's taxi to the fuel pumps, the airplane almost hit an "Eclipse jet" and he thought it was going to hit golf carts. When the airplane arrived, it taxied close enough to the self-serve fuel pumps that it "knocked" a ladder with one of its propellers. He said that the pilot was not "observant about his surroundings." The airplane had white "house letters" painted on its side similar to those on fighter or Air Force aircraft. The letters had "pilot" followed by a name and "copilot" followed by "God." The employee stated that the pilot told him that he hoped there were no more clouds, there was no more weather, and that he wanted 75 gallons of fuel. The pilot pointed east and added that it should be 2 more hours to their destination. The employee thought the destination was Amarillo but was certain that it was in Texas.
The FBO employee said he showed the pilot how to use the fuel pump. The pilot paid with cash. A passenger helped fuel the airplane, adding about 15 gallons to the left and right auxiliary fuel tanks and topping off the wing tip main fuel tanks.
Another passenger mentioned he bought a "brand new GPS" and could not get "ADAS" to work, adding "oh well we'll figure it out later."
At 1054, the pilot called Lockheed Martin Flight Services (LMFS) while at FLG and requested an abbreviated weather briefing for a VFR flight from FLG to Amarillo, Texas. The pilot told the weather briefer that the Amarillo airport identifier was "L51," which was incorrect; the correct identifier for Tradewind Airport was TDW, while L51 was for Heller Farm Airport in Winifred, Montana. Despite this, the briefer provided information for the flight to Amarillo, including Airmen's Meteorological Information for mountain obscuration, convective outlooks, terminal aerodrome forecast for Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport, and winds aloft at 9,000 and 12,000 ft. No record was found that the pilot retrieved any other weather information before or during the flight.
After fueling, the airplane taxied past the FLG ATC tower without making any radio communications. The airplane taxied onto a runway while an "air shuttle" was landing, and the air shuttle (SkyWest 2992) had to abort its landing. The pilot then turned the radio on and taxied off the runway onto a taxiway near the air carrier ramp. A FLG airport rescue and firefighting (ARFF) employee drove to the airplane and told the left front pilot seat occupant that he had to move because it was blocking an air carrier ramp entrance. The employee said that FLG ATC had a "lengthy conversation" with the pilot after he had taxied off the runway and was told to call the tower. The employee overheard the air shuttle pilot asking about the airplane, and FLG ATC responded that it was "a case of situational awareness."
According to an Air Traffic Mandatory Occurrence Report, SkyWest 2992, a CRJ2/L, was on the ILS runway 21 approach and was cleared to land. The accident airplane was observed northbound on taxiway A without authorization, then turned right onto taxiway A2 toward runway 21. The tower controller issued go-around instructions to SkyWest 2992 about 1.5 miles final and coordinated missed approach instructions with Phoenix Approach. The accident airplane continued onto runway 21 and initiated the takeoff roll, then established communication with the tower. The controller instructed the pilot to cancel takeoff and exit the runway. SkyWest 2992 was vectored back to the ILS and landed without further incident.
The FLG ATC tower controller stated that during his telephone conversation with the accident pilot following the runway incursion, the pilot "kind of missed the point," "came up with excuses" for the runway incursion, and did not know there was another airplane "out there" during the incursion. The controller stated that when he told the pilot that there was an airliner on final, the pilot "realized the gravity of the situation." The pilot then said he had been flying for 50 years and nothing like this had happened before. The controller said it "seemed" that the pilot "really didn't register" what had happened. The controller added that during the second takeoff attempt, the accident airplane settled onto the runway after it had lifted off and then climbed out with a left turn.
The ARFF employee stated that the accident airplane taxied from the FBO to taxiway A2, held at A2, and then taxied onto an active runway with a commercial regional airplane on short final without any radio contact to ATC. The employee said that the accident pilot transmitted that he did not have the airplane's radio turned on or "something to that effect" and stated that they were going to take off. The employee said that the radio transmissions from the accident pilot were "screwy" and "lacked organization and context, and was not current." The employee said that it seemed like the pilot had spent a lot of time around uncontrolled airports. During the airplane's second takeoff attempt, the airplane remained low over runway 21 for a long time and, about 1,000 ft from the departure end, pulled up, "not steep," and entered a left turn to the east and headed northeast.
The flight was not receiving ATC services and was not assigned a transponder squawk code. The airplane used squawk code 1200 based on ATC recordings and arrival/departure times to and from FLG. Radar track of an airplane with that squawk code was plotted and showed a turn toward the north.
Personnel Information
The pilot, age 71, held a private pilot certificate with a single-engine land airplane rating. His most recent FAA third-class medical certificate was issued December 17, 2013, with the limitation that he must wear corrective lenses. At that time, he reported 1,000 total flight hours, with 200 in the last 6 months. No military record was received showing flight experience in military airplanes.
The pilot's daughter stated that her father flew F-4 Phantoms. An L35 employee reported that he believed the pilot said he flew F-4 Phantoms and transitioned to helicopters and was injured in Vietnam. A Department of Defense identification card recovered from the accident site showed he served in the US Marine Corps at grade "E3" (Lance Corporal).
The L35 employee said the pilot told him he was a doctor and "had an MD," but the employee stated that he researched these claims and none were true. He said the pilot had "some speech issues" and a "high pitched garbled voice," could not maintain fluent conversation, and his radio transmissions were "very short," which concerned staff.
A review of the pilot's FAA airman record revealed that on July 18, 2009, he failed the practical portion for a private pilot certificate on his first attempt. On reexamination, he was to be reexamined on Basic Instrument Maneuvers, Performance Maneuver, and Navigation. At the time, he reported 301 hours total and 52 hours instruction. On September 21, 2009, he passed his second attempt, reporting 305 hours total and 55 hours instruction. No record indicated he had a multiengine rating or military aircraft experience.
The pilot's logbook, recovered from the accident site, had entries from July 7, 2007, to August 15, 2015. It showed total flight time of 801.9 hours, with 255.6 in single-engine and 217.7 in multiengine airplanes. The first multiengine entry was on January 6, 2013, in a Piper PA-23-250, with 10.5 hours, though the page also indicated 150 previous multiengine hours with no documentation. The logbook showed 17.0 hours of night flight, with only 0.2 in the accident airplane. The most recent night flight was December 2, 2014, for 0.1 hour.
The accident airplane's registration to the pilot was dated June 27, 2014. The first logbook flight in the airplane was July 3, 2014. No record of training in the airplane after purchase. The logbook had 72 entries for the airplane totaling 35.4 hours. One entry on March 7, 2015, stated: "I let [name of pilot-rated passenger] fly part way back."
The pilot's most recent flight review was dated July 17, 2013, in a Piper PA-28-180. The pilot was overdue for his flight review by about 2 months.
Logbook entries from July 4, 2012, July 4, 2013, and November 2, 2013, indicated flights at low altitudes that appeared to violate 14 CFR 91.119 minimum safe altitudes, including flying 10 feet off the ground over a parade and landing on a highway.
An entry on June 14, 2014, showed a flight for "Young Eagles," but the L35 employee said the pilot never produced required paperwork, and about 8 to 10 months before the accident, the program representative decided not to allow him to participate.
An entry on August 15, 2015, showed a 0.3-hour flight in the accident airplane for the Big Bear airshow, with remarks "speed passes over runway." The L35 employee reported that during the airshow, the pilot departed with passengers, and upon return, he turned onto final without the radio on. The air boss cleared another airplane to depart while the accident pilot was on short final. Instead of offsetting during go-around, the pilot performed a "low-level left turn over the crowd" with gear and flaps extended.
The pilot had no previous FAA record of accidents, incidents, or enforcement actions.
The pilot-rated passenger, age 67, held a private pilot certificate with a single-engine land rating. His medical certificate was issued May 28, 2015, with corrective lens limitation, reporting 1,000 hours. He passed his private pilot exam on first attempt on March 25, 2003, reporting 168 hours total and 90 instruction. His logbook showed 785.5 total hours, all in single-engine airplanes. His most recent flight review was June 11, 2015, with the same instructor who provided the pilot's review. He had 17.0 night flight hours, with the most recent on January 5, 2011. He had no prior FAA record.
Aircraft Information
The accident airplane was a 1963 Cessna 310H, serial number 310H-0099, powered by two Continental IO-470-VOCD and IO-470-D engines. It had two 51-gallon main fuel tanks and two 15.5-gallon auxiliary fuel tanks.
According to FAA airworthiness records, the most recent airworthiness certificate was a Special Airworthiness Certificate dated April 11, 2006, issued as a Special Flight Permit for "Out of Annual Inspection – Maintenance." The airplane did not have a current airworthiness certificate at the time of the accident.