Accident Overview
On November 11, 2019, at 1126 Pacific standard time, a Cessna 182, registration N8749T, was reported overdue and missing near Metaline Falls, Washington. The airplane was operating as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) alert notice (ALNOT) information, the airplane had departed on a visual flight rules (VFR) local flight from Colville Municipal Airport (63S), Colville, Washington. The ALNOT was issued at 1905 on the same day after the pilot did not return as planned.
Search and Recovery
Local authorities discovered the pilot’s body on the morning of November 16, 2019, near the shore of Sullivan Lake, approximately 28 nautical miles northeast of 63S. There were no witnesses to the accident, and the wreckage was not recovered. No radar information could be definitively correlated with the accident airplane.
Weather Information
Review of weather information for the day of the accident was consistent with VFR conditions in the area of the accident site. Model sounding data suggested no low clouds or restrictions to visibility.
Medical Examination
An autopsy of the pilot was performed by the Spokane County, Washington, Office of the Medical Examiner. The cause of death was attributed to presumed hypothermia and drowning. Toxicology testing of specimens from the pilot at the FAA Forensic Sciences Laboratory was negative for carbon monoxide and ethanol. Glucose was detected in vitreous and urine, and rosuvastatin was detected in blood and urine.