History of Flight
On April 19, 2016, about 1244 eastern daylight time, a Vans RV-12, N276VA, was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain during final approach for landing at Bay Bridge Airport (W29), Stevensville, Maryland. The airline transport pilot and passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was registered to Yoxford Air, LLC, and operated by Chesapeake Sport Pilot under Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight, which originated from Easton/Newnam Field Airport (ESN), Easton, Maryland.
The flight departed W29 about 1210 and proceeded to ESN, about 16 nautical miles southeast, where the pilot performed a full-stop landing and subsequent takeoff. The flight then departed the ESN traffic pattern and returned to W29 at an altitude about 1,500 ft.
Witnesses at W29 reported no transmissions from the pilot to the CTAF as the airplane approached. Flight track data showed the airplane enter the traffic pattern on a left downwind leg for runway 29 at about 1,000 ft mean sea level then initiate a left descending turn to base leg. Multiple witnesses observed the airplane on final approach and reported it seemed unusually low, about 50 to 75 ft. Several described the right wing drop before the airplane pitched nose-down and descended. Another witness reported the flight path seemed normal, then the nose pitched up briefly followed by a bank to the right, then a nose-dive. The airplane impacted terrain and cartwheeled about 75 ft before coming to rest upright about 750 ft short of runway 29 and slightly left of the extended centerline. A postimpact fire consumed the fuselage before being extinguished about 10 minutes after the accident.
Personnel Information
According to FAA records, the pilot, age 63, held an airline transport pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single- and multi-engine land, and a flight instructor certificate for airplane single engine. He was issued a first-class medical certificate in April 2008, which expired in April 2010. At the time of the accident, he did not possess a medical certificate, nor was he required to for the light sport airplane. On his last medical application, he reported 5,136 total flight hours. The pilot completed two flights with a flight instructor in March and April 2016, totaling 2.4 hours of flight instruction and 3 hours of ground instruction. He received an instructor signoff to fly the accident airplane on April 7, 2016. No pilot logbooks or additional flight records were recovered.
The flight instructor stated the pilot called several weeks earlier for a checkout in the RV-12 and had no light sport experience. During instruction, they performed steep turns, stalls, normal and soft field takeoffs, landings, and go-arounds. The instructor stated the pilot seemed very comfortable and flew very well.
Aircraft Information
According to FAA records and the manufacturer, the two-seat, low-wing, fixed landing gear airplane was manufactured by Van's Aircraft, Inc., and received its special airworthiness certificate for light sport on June 23, 2015. The most recent 100-hour inspection was completed on March 16, 2016, at 298.6 total hours. The airplane was equipped with a Rotax 912-ULS-2 engine. The pilot's operating handbook stated stall speed with flaps extended at max gross weight was 41 knots; with flaps retracted, 45 knots. Maximum direct crosswind was 11 knots.
Meteorological Information
At 1248, weather recorded at W29 included 10 miles visibility, temperature 26°C, dew point 6°C, altimeter 29.99 inHg. At 1245, ESN reported wind from 320° at 10 knots gusting to 16 knots, 10 miles visibility, scattered clouds at 25,000 ft, temperature 26°C, dew point 6°C, altimeter 30.02 inHg. The closest upper air sounding from Aberdeen Proving Grounds (APG) at 0800 indicated a morning surface-based inversion to about 800 ft. Winds were from the northwest at 10 knots increasing to over 20 knots above the inversion, with strong shear resulting in potential low-level wind shear and turbulence.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The center fuselage and wings remained intact but significantly damaged. The wing spar remained attached to both wings and carried through the fuselage. Fire consumed the center section where the 20-gallon fuel tank was located just aft of the cockpit seats, and also consumed the aft fuselage and empennage. The left wing remained attached with minor compression and buckling on the forward outboard portion; the left flaperon remained attached and operated normally. The right wingtip was deformed with numerous compression bends along the span; the right flaperon was ripped from its mounts and found about 30 ft east of the main wreckage. The flaperon handle was secured in the retracted position. The rudder was mostly destroyed by fire, but the lower attach point remained connected. The stabilator remained intact and attached. The vertical stabilizer fractured just above the rear fuselage attach point. Flight control continuity was established from the rudder and stabilator through the fuselage, but continuity to the rudder pedals could not be established due to damage. The engine separated from the airframe and came to rest inverted about 18 inches behind the cockpit. Crankshaft rotation showed compression and suction on all cylinders; spark plugs appeared normal. Two propeller witness marks were found in the ground, with one highly distinct gash 20 inches long and 8 inches deep. One blade separated at the hub; the other remained connected and was fire-damaged.
Medical and Pathological Information
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for Maryland performed an autopsy; cause of death was multiple injuries. Evidence of a scar from a previous stroke was identified, as well as significant heart disease: an intact artificial aortic heart valve, severe coronary artery disease with 75% stenosis of the left anterior descending artery and 30% in the right coronary artery. No gross evidence of scarring from a previous heart attack. Toxicology testing by the medical examiner identified amlodipine in urine but not in blood. FAA toxicology identified losartan, rosuvastatin, carvedilol, and salicylate in urine; amlodipine in liver and cavity blood; rosuvastatin in blood. Losartan, carvedilol, and amlodipine are prescription blood pressure medications; salicylate is a metabolite of aspirin; rosuvastatin is a cholesterol lowering agent. None are generally considered impairing. Records from the pilot's primary care doctor between April 2013 and April 2016 indicated the pilot had undergone aortic valve and aortic root replacement in 2012, longstanding hypertension and high cholesterol, and a transient ischemic attack before 2013.
Additional Information
According to the Vans RV-12 Pilot Operating Handbook: "During gusty wind conditions, fly the landing approach at approximately 5 knots above normal and touch down with the nose slightly lower than for a normal landing. Crosswind approaches can best be accomplished by using the wing down top rudder method touching first on the down wing side main wheel, followed by the other main wheel, and finally lowering the nose wheel all the while keeping the stick into the wind." The Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3B) states: "The wing-low (sideslip) method compensates for a crosswind from any angle, but more important, it keeps the airplane's ground track and longitudinal axis aligned with the runway centerline throughout the final approach. For landing in turbulent conditions, use a power-on approach at an airspeed slightly above the normal approach speed."