History of the Flight
On July 13, 2017, about 2258 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-44-180, N2173S, was destroyed during an inflight breakup near Marineland, Florida. The flight instructor and private pilot receiving instruction were fatally injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by Sunrise Aviation, Inc., Ormond Beach, Florida, as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instructional flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the cross-country flight, which originated from Brunswick, Georgia, at an undetermined time with an intended destination of Ormond Beach Municipal Airport (OMN), Ormond Beach, Florida.
The accident flight was a roundtrip night cross-country instructional flight from OMN to Brunswick. Following one landing at Brunswick, the flight was to return to OMN as part of the pilot's initial commercial multi-engine rating training course. According to the company's flight training syllabus, the flight should have consisted of dead reckoning, pilotage, performance planning, GPS or VOR navigation, cross-country planning, normal takeoff and landings, intercepting and tracking navigational systems, and instrument procedures.
Federal Aviation Administration air traffic control audio communications and ground tracking radar information, including Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast data, were reviewed. The airplane was on a southerly course along the coastline at altitudes between 5,500 ft and 5,700 ft mean sea level. At 2250, the flight contacted ATC and advised they were at 5,500 ft. At 2257:36, the data showed the airplane began to descend. The pilot radioed the controller 26 seconds later, stating they were starting down and had the OMN lights in sight. At 2258:27, the airplane climbed from 5,200 ft to 5,600 ft over 4 seconds, remained at 5,600 ft for about 3 seconds, then initiated a descending right turn lasting about 11 seconds. At 2258:45, the airplane had descended to 3,000 ft. The last ADS-B data point at 2258:46 showed the flight at 3,600 ft, about 0.3 mile northwest of the main wreckage. Between 2259:29 and 2259:48, the controller unsuccessfully attempted to establish radio communication. An alert notice was issued. The main wreckage was located by law enforcement air units about 1141 the following day.
Personnel Information
The flight instructor, age 70, held an airline transport pilot certificate with airplane single-engine land and single-engine sea ratings, along with commercial pilot privileges for airplane multi-engine land and glider. He also held a flight instructor certificate with airplane single- and multi-engine and instrument ratings. A third-class FAA airman medical certificate was issued on June 4, 2016, with the limitation "must have available glasses for near vision." On the application, he reported 34,830 total hours of flight experience, of which 400 hours were in the previous 6 months. His logbook was not located.
The pilot receiving instruction, age 27, held a private pilot certificate with airplane single-engine land and instrument airplane ratings. He was issued a second-class FAA medical certificate on August 17, 2016, with no limitations. Flight school records revealed that, as of July 12, 2017, he had accumulated 131.2 hours of flight experience, of which 7 hours were in multi-engine airplanes.
Aircraft Information
The four-seat, low-wing, retractable gear, twin-engine airplane, serial number 44-7995245, was manufactured in 1979. It was powered by 180-horsepower O-360-E1A6D and LO-360-F1A6D engines. Both engines were equipped with Hartzell constant-speed, 2-bladed propellers. The airplane had two 55-gallon fuel tanks. The most recent annual inspection was completed on June 12, 2017, at an airframe total time of 9,460.5 hours and right engine tachometer hour reading of 9,460.5 hours. At that time, the left engine had accumulated 2,174.0 hours since major overhaul (engine total time 6,724.5 hours) and the right engine had accumulated 3,122.4 hours since major overhaul (engine total time 9,958.7 hours). Using reported weights of both occupants (223 lbs and 185 lbs), an airplane empty weight of 2,460 lbs, and an estimated fuel load of 72 gallons, the airplane was estimated to weigh about 3,285 lbs at the time of the accident. Maximum gross weight is 3,801 pounds.
Meteorological Information
Recorded weather observation data from Daytona Beach International Airport, located about 30 miles south of the accident site, at 2253 included wind from 090° at 3 knots, 10 statute miles visibility, a broken cloud layer at 25,000 ft, temperature 28°C, dew point 26°C, and an altimeter setting of 30.15 inches of mercury.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The airplane impacted terrain about 25 miles north of OMN. The main wreckage came to rest inverted within a heavily wooded area. Trees directly above the wreckage were broken, consistent with little to no forward movement at impact. Outboard portions of the left and right wings, baggage door, and a portion of the right stabilator were located throughout a 0.5-mile-long and 0.2-mile-wide debris path in water and marshland northwest of the main wreckage. The fuselage came to rest inverted on a heading about 022° magnetic. Various debris, including fragments of the left stabilator, were located within about 50 ft of the fuselage.
Examination of the recovered wreckage revealed that the roof structure was compressed into the cabin seating area. The fuselage was partially separated at fuselage station 156. The instrument panel was crushed aft into the front seat area. Both left and right inboard wing portions remained attached. Control cables exhibited overload separations. The left engine fuel selector valve lever was in the "on" position, and the right engine fuel selector valve lever was in the "off" position; positions could not be verified due to impact damage.
The outboard left wing was recovered about 0.48 mile west-northwest of the main wreckage. The main spar was fractured about wing station 105. Fracture surfaces had a dull, grainy appearance consistent with overstress separation. No evidence of pre-existing corrosion or cracking was found. The right outboard wing was recovered about 0.39 mile west-northwest, with similar overstress separations. The empennage exhibited separations; the vertical stabilizer was separated from the fuselage but remained connected by wiring. The left stabilator was torn into several pieces. Flight control continuity was established throughout, with all separations indicating overload.
Both engines were examined. The left engine remained attached to its mount; rotational continuity was established, compression and suction were obtained on all cylinders, and no pre-impact anomalies were noted. The right engine similarly exhibited rotational continuity and normal internal condition. Both propellers showed blade damage consistent with power at impact. The left propeller blades were bent aft and twisted; the right propeller was fractured from the engine. Both had witness marks indicating blade angles in the low range of normal operation.
Medical and Pathological Information
An autopsy of the flight instructor was performed by the Flagler County Medical Examiner. The cause of death was multiple blunt force injuries. Toxicology testing detected ethanol in liver at 0.087 gm/dl. Additionally, testing identified anhydroecgonine methyl ester (a product of cocaine smoking) in liver; benzoylecgonine at 22 ng/mg in liver and 25 ng/mg in muscle; ecgonine methyl ester in liver; levamisole in liver; delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in muscle at 108 ng/mg (inconclusive in liver); and 11-nor-9-carboxy-delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC-COOH) in muscle at 4.5 ng/mg, in liver at 63.7 ng/mg, and in urine at 184.3 ng/ml. No ethanol was detected in urine. The effects of cocaine and marijuana were described in the report as including central nervous system stimulation and depression, respectively, with potential impacts on performance.