History of Flight
On June 1, 2016, at approximately 2046 central daylight time, a Cessna 150K, registration N5679G, collided in flight with a steel silo in Penwell, Texas. The pilot, the sole occupant, was fatally injured, and the airplane was destroyed. The aircraft was owned and operated by LM Air Patrol Service, Inc., of Midland, Texas, under 14 CFR Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated from Odessa Airport-Schlemeyer Field (ODO), Odessa, Texas, around 2000.
According to LM Air Patrol Service, the pilot was an employee who had conducted a pipeline patrol mission earlier that day, securing the airplane about 1500. That evening, he took the airplane without company permission. The Midland Police Department reported that the pilot telephoned his wife, stating he intended to kill himself. She alerted the employer, who then contacted the police. The airplane was flying eastbound when it struck a 138-foot tall silo at the Cemex plant in Penwell.
Personnel Information
The 45-year-old pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with airplane single-engine, multiengine, and instrument ratings. His last medical certificate, dated February 14, 2015, was denied due to multiple alcohol-related events, and the certificate was surrendered on April 6, 2016. According to LM Air Patrol Service, the pilot had logged 5,359 total flight hours, with 450 hours in the Cessna 150 and 2,600 hours in multiengine aircraft. In the last 90 days, he logged about 300 hours; in the last 30 days, about 100 hours; and in the last 24 hours, 5 hours.
Aircraft Information
N5679G, serial number 15071179, was a Cessna 150K manufactured by Cessna Aircraft Company in 1969. It was modified and powered by a Continental O-320-E2D engine rated at 150 horsepower, driving a McCauley 2-blade fixed-pitch propeller. The last annual inspection was completed on June 15, 2015, at an airframe total time of 3,987 hours. The engine had accrued 1,396 hours since major overhaul.
Meteorological Information
Weather recorded at Odessa Airport (ODO) at 2053 CDT: wind from 040° at 18 knots; visibility 10 miles; sky condition few clouds at 6,500 feet, scattered at 8,000 feet; temperature 22°C; dew point 15°C; altimeter 29.92 inches of mercury. Remarks noted lightning distant all quadrants.
Medical and Pathological Information
An autopsy performed by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office attributed death to massive blunt force trauma consistent with the aircraft striking a structure. No notable natural disease was noted. The manner of death was consistent with suicide.
Toxicology screens by the FAA's Civil Aeromedical Institute (CAMI) and the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office revealed: 133 mg/dL ethanol in brain tissue and 131 mg/dL in muscle tissue; 0.036 µg/mL alprazolam in liver; 1.961 µg/mL butalbital in liver; 0.933 µg/mL butalbital in lung; metoprolol detected in lung and liver. Tarrant County reported muscle tissue positive for ethanol (0.030 g/dL), benzodiazepine, and alprazolam (117 ng/mL).
The FAA noted that alprazolam (Xanax) is a benzodiazepine used for panic and anxiety disorders, with side effects including sedation and impaired coordination, and its use may violate 14 CFR Part 61.53(a), 91.17(a)(3), and/or Part 67. Butalbital, used for pain and migraines, may impair mental and physical ability and is disqualifying for aeromedical certification. Metoprolol, a beta blocker, is used for hypertension and certain arrhythmias.