History of Flight
On April 23, 2019, at 2203 central daylight time, a Bellanca 17-30A, registration N9693E, sustained substantial damage in an accident near Henderson, Kentucky. The student pilot and a passenger received fatal injuries. The flight was a personal flight under 14 CFR Part 91. The airplane owner stated that the student pilot flew the airplane without permission. Earlier that day, the student pilot had flown with a flight instructor from Mid-Carolina Regional Airport (RUQ) to Spartanburg Memorial Airport and back. The airplane was fueled twice at RUQ: 16 gallons at 1124 eastern daylight time and 52 gallons at 1846 eastern daylight time. A video recording showed the airplane departed RUQ at 1905 eastern daylight time, about one hour before sunset. FAA radar data indicated the airplane approached Henderson City-County Airport (EHR) from the southeast around 2145. It entered a left downwind traffic pattern leg for runway 27. At 2151, it was on a half-mile final at 700 ft mean sea level (msl) when radar contact was lost. About 1.5 minutes later, it reappeared 1.1 miles west of the departure end of the runway at 700 ft msl, then flew north-northwest about 10 miles into an area of light rain, then reversed course back toward the airport. At 2203, the last radar data showed the airplane half-mile south of the departure end of runway 27, at 1,050 ft msl, groundspeed 90-100 knots, track 105° magnetic. Airport personnel discovered the airplane shortly before 0700 the following day in a grass area about midfield, 200 ft left of the runway 27 centerline, about 0.85 mile from the last radar position. The airport had closed at 1930; pilot-controllable runway lighting remained on low, and the beacon operated from sunset to sunrise. No eyewitnesses were identified, but state police received calls about a low-flying airplane or a boom between 2000 and 2230.
Personnel Information
The pilot's logbook had no endorsements for solo flight or for operation of complex/high-performance airplanes. It contained two entries for dual cross-country flights: one night flight on February 9, 2018, for 1.6 hours in a Cessna 172, and the earlier daylight flight on the accident day. The only other night experience logged was 2.4 hours of dual instruction, annotated as takeoffs and landings in a Cessna 172.
Aircraft Information
The pilot's operating handbook for the accident airplane was not found. According to a handbook for a similar airplane, the fuel burn rate in cruise flight is about 13 to 16 gallons per hour. The fuel tanks hold 68 gallons of fuel, of which 60 gallons is usable.
Meteorological Information
Weather radar records depicted light rain about 10 miles north-northwest of the airport. The sun had set at 1934, about 2.5 hours before the accident. The moon had not risen.
Wreckage and Impact Information
Examination revealed all major components were present at the accident site within an area approximately 100 ft in diameter. The right wing leading edge was fragmented and separated from the wing, found within a ground scar in the grass oriented about 270° magnetic. The propeller hub was separated from the engine with all three blades attached and embedded in the mud; the hub was oriented about 90° nose-down near the inboard section of the right wing leading edge. The spinner was crushed aft. One blade was bent aft about midspan, one was bent slightly aft about 1/3 span, and the third blade was not bent. None of the blades had chordwise scratch marks. The fuselage came to rest about 15 ft south of the right wing leading edge fragments, oriented perpendicular to the runway. No ground scars led toward or away from the main wreckage area. The right wing was fractured about midspan with the outboard section partially separated. The two aluminum fuel tank cells in the right wing were damaged but largely intact. Blue stains were found on wood wing components below and forward of the fuel tanks, surrounding the tank vent, and on the fuel quantity sensor. About 3 to 4 gallons of fuel were recovered from the right wing tanks. A placard on the tank filler neck read "34 GAL. 30 GAL. USABLE." The fuel selector valve was in the "RIGHT" tank position. The left wing was largely intact; the fuel tanks were undamaged. About 2 ounces of fuel were recovered after pressurizing the tanks with air at the filler neck. The forward fuselage exhibited crush damage and was partially separated at the leading edge of the wing. The auxiliary fuel tank behind the rear seats was undamaged and devoid of fuel. Flight control continuity was established from all primary flight control surfaces to their respective cockpit controls. Pitch trim control continuity was established from the trim tab to the damaged roof area of the cockpit. The empennage was mostly undamaged. The landing gear handle was in the "down" position; both main landing gear were extended; the nose landing gear was damaged and partially extended. There was no evidence of a postcrash fire. All four engine mounts were fractured, and the engine was separated from the fuselage. The oil sump was impact damaged and breached near the drain plug; an undetermined amount of oil was found underneath the engine. Top spark plugs were removed; Nos. 1 through 4 exhibited light grey combustion deposits; Nos. 5 and 6 exhibited darker black deposits. All electrodes showed normal wear. The fuel pump remained attached; the drive coupling was intact, and a few drops of fuel leaked from the fractured pump inlet fitting when removed. After priming, the fuel pump operated normally when turned. The fuel nozzles were removed and were free of obstruction. The engine crankshaft was rotated by hand at the propeller flange; thumb compression and suction were observed on all six cylinders with proper valve movement. Continuity throughout the engine and accessory section was established. Both magnetos were separated from their mounting pads with fractured flanges; both produced impulse coupling engagement and spark on all towers when rotated. The fuel manifold valve was disassembled; the diaphragm was intact with no leakage, the plunger and retaining nut were tight, the fuel screen was clean, and the cavity contained a small amount of fuel. The air induction tubes were crush damaged. The air filter was not found. The throttle body and mixture control assembly were separated from the engine and remained near the firewall with cables attached.
Medical and Pathological Information
An autopsy of the pilot by the Western Kentucky Regional Medical Examiner's Office determined the cause of death as multiple blunt force trauma. Toxicology testing by the FAA Forensic Sciences Laboratory identified 173 ng/ml of methamphetamine in femoral blood and 26,859 ng/ml in urine; 28 ng/ml of amphetamine in femoral blood and 3,073 ng/ml in urine; cocaine in femoral blood (unquantified) and its metabolites benzoylecgonine (200 ng/ml in blood, 12,795 ng/ml in urine) and ecgonine methyl ester in blood and urine; levamisole in cavity blood and urine; and tetrahydrozoline, phenylpropanolamine, and anhydroecgonine methyl ester in urine.
Additional Information
Based on the estimated fuel onboard and the estimated fuel burn rate, the airplane's estimated endurance was about 4 hours or more, assuming no fuel in the auxiliary tank. The flight duration from departure to the accident was about 4 hours, including about 20 minutes of flight after the initial approach at EHR, while a direct flight would be about 2.4 hours at a cruise speed of 180 mph. The precise route of the entire flight or any intermediate stops could not be determined.