History of Flight
On September 11, 2015, at approximately 1510 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172P, registration N52445, collided with terrain near Riegelwood, North Carolina. The non-certificated pilot was fatally injured, and the airplane sustained substantial damage. The airplane was privately owned and operated under 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed along the route, and no flight plan was filed. The flight departed from a private grass airstrip in Bolton, North Carolina, at 1500, with a destination of Henderson Field Airport (ACZ) in Wallace, North Carolina.
According to the owner of the departure airstrip, a mechanic/pilot and the accident pilot arrived from ACZ to pick up the airplane for repairs. After landing, the mechanic/pilot exited the accident airplane from the right seat, then entered his own airplane and prepared for departure. The airstrip owner watched both airplanes depart, noting that the accident airplane sounded "fine" and that after takeoff it turned left, not following the mechanic/pilot's airplane.
Approximately 45 minutes later, after the mechanic/pilot landed at ACZ, he called the airstrip owner to ask if the accident pilot had departed. The owner confirmed that he had departed shortly after. The mechanic/pilot then stated he would search for his friend. After an hour without locating the airplane, he called again to ask if it had returned, which it had not. The mechanic/pilot contacted the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center (AFRCC), which received an active emergency locator transmitter signal at 1815. The wreckage was found in a field about three nautical miles northeast of the departure airstrip at 0030 the following day.
Personnel Information
The pilot, age 76, did not hold a pilot certificate. According to FAA records, he first applied for a medical certificate in 1973, reporting 3 hours of flight experience. On his last application, dated January 18, 1979, he reported 6,800 total hours. He reported no medical conditions or medications. In 1979, he received a second-class medical certificate requiring glasses for near vision, which expired for all classes in 1981. No flight records or logbooks were located after the expiration of his last medical certificate.
Aircraft Information
The four-seat, high-wing, fixed landing gear Cessna 172P was manufactured in 1981. It was powered by a Lycoming O-320-D2J engine with a McCauley DES1C160 fixed-pitch propeller. Maintenance logbooks showed an annual inspection completed on March 26, 2008, at a tachometer reading of 5,005 hours, airframe total time of 10,527 hours, and engine time since major overhaul of 1,407 hours. The tachometer at the accident site read 5,031.98. FAA records indicated the airplane was issued a "Special Flight Permit" for maintenance on December 5, 2012, due to a lapsed annual inspection. An invoice showed the airplane flew from Wilmington International Airport (ILM) to ACZ in April 2015.
Meteorological Information
Weather recorded at ILM (20 nautical miles from the accident site) at 1453 included winds from 100 degrees at 10 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, few clouds at 6,000 feet and scattered at 8,000 feet. Temperature was 28°C, dew point 22°C, and altimeter setting 29.82 inches of mercury.
Wreckage and Impact Information
Wreckage debris and broken tree limbs were scattered for about 600 feet along an approximate 150-degree magnetic heading from a cluster of scraped and broken trees. A separated section of the outboard left wing and aileron were found at the beginning of the debris path. A ground scar about 30 feet long and 4 feet wide was located about 50 feet southeast of the initial tree cluster. The fuselage and empennage were about 550 feet southeast of the scar.
Examination of the left wing showed it remained attached to the main wing spar, with about 5 feet of the outboard wing fragmented and the remainder buckled forward. The flap was up, and the aileron control cable continuity was confirmed. The fuel tank was breached, and the fuel cap was locked and secure.
The right wing also remained attached to the main spar, with the entire span buckled. The flap was up, aileron attached, and control cable continuity confirmed. The fuel tank was breached, and the fuel cap was secure.
The empennage was attached, with the vertical stabilizer, rudder, horizontal stabilizer, and elevators intact. Rudder and elevator control continuity was established. The elevator trim tab was at 5 degrees nose up.
The fuselage came to rest on its belly. The cabin, roof, and floor showed crush damage; the cabin door was separated. The instrument panel was crushed, with most instruments and avionics separated. The control yoke and rudder pedals were crushed. Engine power controls were damaged; positions could not be determined. The engine start and magneto switch was found with the key absent and the switch in the "both" position. The attitude indicator and directional gyro were crushed and unreliable.
The engine was separated from the firewall with bent engine mount sections attached. The propeller, oil filter, exhaust muffler, and portions of intake/exhaust tubing were separated. The engine was partially disassembled. Crankshaft continuity was confirmed; compression and suction were observed on all cylinders. Oil was present. Both magnetos were impact-damaged; the left magneto case was fractured and inoperable, while the right magneto produced spark on all towers. The carburetor was damaged, with the float bowl separated and empty; brass floats were crushed; the fuel inlet screen was not located.
The propeller was separated from the crankshaft. One blade was bent aft about 5 degrees with twisting and leading edge abrasions; the other blade was curved forward about 5 degrees at about 2/3 span with leading edge abrasions.
Medical and Pathological Information
An autopsy performed by the North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner listed the cause of death as multiple blunt force trauma. The autopsy, limited by body damage, identified evidence of previous 3-vessel coronary artery bypass grafting, ongoing coronary artery disease, and extensive scarring in a very enlarged heart. Forensic toxicology tests by the FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute were negative for carbon monoxide, drugs, and alcohol.