History of Flight
On October 1, 2017, at approximately 1043 Pacific daylight time, a Cirrus Design Corp SR22, registration N6083D, was destroyed when it impacted terrain while maneuvering at low altitude in a remote mountainous area near Klamath Falls, Oregon. The private pilot and passenger sustained fatal injuries. The airplane was registered to Cascade Forestry Inc. of Gold Hill, Oregon, and was operated by the pilot under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Instrument meteorological conditions were reported in the area at the time, and no flight plan was filed for the cross-country flight, which departed Crater Lake-Klamath Regional Airport (LMT) about 1030 and was destined for Rogue Valley International-Medford Airport (MFR).
An acquaintance of the pilot, a retired U.S. Air Force pilot, stated that the pilot had mentioned a plan to depart under visual flight rules (VFR), climb above the clouds, and find a "hole" around MFR for a VFR descent; if unable, he would return to LMT. The acquaintance recalled the pilot saying there was an overcast layer over MFR but VFR conditions underneath. At LMT, the weather was VFR with light winds and scattered to broken clouds at 4,000 ft above ground level (agl). The acquaintance noted that the pilot never mentioned attempting to fly below the clouds en route, which would have been problematic due to mountain obscuration.
An Oregon state trooper conducting fish and wildlife surveillance with another trooper reported hearing a low-flying aircraft moving from southeast to northwest. He could not see the aircraft because cloud cover was at treetop level. He heard the aircraft turn sharply left with the engine "screaming" as if at full power. The engine then normalized as the aircraft headed south, but soon the engine revved up again. The trooper then heard a loud pop followed by silence. He described encountering a "wall of clouds that were spitting snow" after departing Klamath Falls.
Radar data from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) showed the airplane first identified at 1030:55 about 0.6 nautical mile northwest of LMT, climbing through 4,800 ft mean sea level (msl). It leveled at 6,300 ft msl at 1033:07, turned right, and climbed to 8,700 ft msl by 1041:52. The airplane then entered a descending left turn, with rapid altitude changes: descending from 8,700 to 8,100 ft at 1,500 ft per minute, climbing to 9,000 ft at 4,500 fpm, then descending to 7,100 ft at 9,500 fpm with an average ground speed of 40 knots. The last radar return at 1042:40 indicated an altitude of 7,100 ft (1,700 ft agl) about 638 ft west of the accident site.
Pilot Information
The pilot held a private pilot certificate with a single-engine land rating but no instrument rating. He was issued a third-class FAA medical certificate on October 5, 2016, with the limitation "must have available glasses for near vision." His logbook showed 170 total flight hours, including 52 hours as pilot-in-command, and 16 hours in the accident airplane make and model (10 as pilot-in-command). He had 3 hours of simulated instrument time. In the preceding 90, 30, and 24 days, he flew 23, 16, and 1 hour, respectively.
Aircraft Information
The four-seat, low-wing, fixed-gear airplane, serial number 0612, was manufactured in 2003. It was powered by a Continental IO-550-N7B engine rated at 310 horsepower driving a Hartzell constant-speed propeller. The most recent annual inspection was completed on September 25, 2017, at an airframe total time of 1,436.7 hours. The airplane had 23.3 hours since a 100-hour inspection on December 1, 2016.
Meteorological Information
At 1053, LMT reported wind from 310° at 9 knots gusting to 16 knots, 10 miles visibility, overcast clouds at 4,500 ft, temperature 11°C, dew point -1°C, altimeter 30.14 inHg. At 1053, MFR reported calm wind, 10 miles visibility, scattered clouds at 3,400 ft, broken at 6,000 ft, temperature 14°C, dew point 6°C, altimeter 30.19 inHg. An AIRMET advisory issued at 0745 for mountain obscuration was active for the accident location, and AIRMET SIERRA for IFR conditions advised ceilings below 1,000 ft and visibility below 3 statute miles. An Area Forecast issued at 0832 indicated widespread instrument meteorological conditions with terrain and mountains obscured. GOES-15 satellite data showed cloudy conditions at the accident site, with minimum infrared cloud-top temperatures of -4°C corresponding to cloud top heights around 9,000 ft.
Wreckage and Impact
The airplane initially struck a tree about 25 ft above ground on a northeast heading, then impacted the base of a second tree and continued northeast, coming to rest about 100 ft from the initial impact. The wreckage path was about 160 ft long and 45 ft wide. The airplane was highly fragmented. The nose landing gear was south of the main impact crater. The separated propeller with two blades attached was found northeast of the crater; the third blade and left main landing gear were inside the crater. Both wings were destroyed, the left wing left of the second impact, the right wing between the second impact and main wreckage. The engine was crushed aft into the cockpit/cabin area. The Avidyne MFD and PFD were destroyed; the MFD compact flash card was damaged and data could not be recovered. The Cirrus Airframe Parachute System was expelled and unfurled about 40 ft northeast of the main wreckage. Examination of the engine and airframe revealed no mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.
Medical and Pathological Information
An autopsy conducted by the Oregon State Medical Examiner determined the cause of death as "massive blunt trauma." No record of toxicological testing on the pilot was available.