History of Flight
On February 13, 2020, at 1126 eastern standard time, a Mooney M20J, registration N1149T, was substantially damaged in an accident near Bartow Executive Airport (BOW), Bartow, Florida. The pilot and a passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was operating under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal formation flight.
The formation flight consisted of four airplanes: an RV-9, RV-6A, RV8, and the accident airplane. The accident pilot and his wife joined last and were assigned the No. 4 position. The flight departed Spruce Creek Airport (7FL6), Daytona Beach, Florida, about 1045. Data from an onboard Stratus device and automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) data for the lead airplane showed the accident airplane climbed to 1,300 ft then 1,700 ft msl, maintaining 120–140 knots throughout the formation flight to BOW. Its path, altitude, and speed closely followed the lead airplane.
The formation began descending at 1117. Approaching BOW, the tower controller instructed the formation to enter the right downwind leg for runway 23. The formation flew about 3 miles northwest of BOW, and the flight lead instructed the pilots to “Go extended trail.” All complied and were in trail behind the lead. The last entry in a detailed flight log kept by the passenger read “Extended trail 1122.” The accident airplane’s speed then diverged, slowing 30 knots from the lead. The pilot turned from a track of 210° to 70° following the three airplanes into the traffic pattern “in trail.” The flight lead stated he made a short base turn, and each airplane was expected to make a later turn onto base to increase spacing.
Data from the Stratus device showed the accident airplane slowed and descended on the downwind leg. At 1125:18, about 1,500 ft past the lead’s turn, the pilot maneuvered onto the base leg with bank angles between 5° and 20°. From 1125:45 to 1126, the airplane leveled off on base at about 70 knots and 500 ft msl. Just after 1126, the airplane turned right toward the runway and pitched down. It continued a right turn, passed through runway heading, then turned left and steeply descended at 1126:15. Data ended at 1126:19 with the airplane at about 230 ft msl (110 ft agl) and 0.6 nm short of the runway threshold.
A witness in the BOW tower reported seeing airplane No. 1 on short final; Nos. 2, 3, and 4 were “very close” and appeared in a triangle formation, but the accident airplane was inverted and descended straight down. A witness on the ramp saw what he thought was a “flight of 3” lined up on final; he observed the accident airplane approaching airplane No. 3 from the right at a 30–45° angle. The accident airplane’s right wing “dipped severely attempting to avoid” No. 3, followed by a steep left bank and vertical descent. He stated the accident airplane was “closing in on airplane No. 3” and made a “sharp right turn to avoid a midair” collision. A second witness reported a similar account. A dashcam video captured airplane No. 3 on final and the accident airplane in a right bank then left bank before it entered a nose-down attitude.
The pilot’s niece stated her aunt and uncle were meticulous in maintenance and planning; her aunt kept detailed logs of every flight. Review of six logs revealed minute-by-minute entries. One notebook recovered from the wreckage contained entries for the accident flight including “RWY 24 10:45,” “123.7 10:46,” “121.2 KBOW T 11:09,” “Lt 11:10,” “121.2 KBOW T 11:20,” and “Extended Trail 11:22.” No further entries existed, unlike previous flights, and no entries for the downwind or base legs.
Aircraft and Wreckage
The airplane was equipped with an engine monitor that recorded engine data. The airplane was fueled 11 days prior and contained about 16 gallons of fuel at the time of the accident. Engine data showed normal parameters during the flight.
Examination of the accident site and wreckage revealed the airplane struck a large tree before impacting terrain at a private residence about 0.6 nm from runway 23. A ground scar from the left wing was oriented on a magnetic heading of about 090°, and the fuselage came to rest upright on a heading of about 046°. Fire rescue reported a faint fuel odor near the engine that dissipated quickly. All major components were on site. No preimpact anomalies or malfunctions were identified. Flight control continuity was established. Both wings were impact-crushed aft; no fire evidence existed. The left fuel tank was impact breached. The landing gear was in the UP position, and the flaps were extended to 10°. One propeller blade was separated from the hub, exhibiting leading edge gouges, chordwise scoring, and twisting; the other blade had leading and trailing edge gouges and chordwise scoring. The engine was rotated, continuity confirmed, compression and suction observed from all cylinders, both magnetos produced sparks, and borescope examination of cylinders revealed no anomalies.
Medical and Toxicology
The Office of the District Medical Examiner, Winter Haven, Florida, performed the pilot’s autopsy. The cause of death was blunt impact, and the manner was accident. The autopsy identified pulmonary emphysema and a fatty liver. Toxicology testing by the FAA’s Forensic Sciences Laboratory identified fluoxetine and its metabolite norfluoxetine in the pilot’s liver and urine. Fluoxetine is an antidepressant (Prozac) with warnings about potential impairment. Personal medical records showed the pilot had a history of depression intermittently treated with fluoxetine; at his last visit 4 months before the accident, he was not taking the medication and was feeling in good spirits. He also had high cholesterol and was taking atorvastatin.
Performance Analysis
A performance study based on Stratus data calculated groundspeed and calibrated airspeed using recorded flight path and reported weather. A simplified airplane model with lift curve data from Mooney International Corporation and airplane geometry was used to calculate pitch, roll, and angle of attack (AoA). The calculated AoA increased as the airplane slowed and maneuvered on descent. The maximum AoA occurred at 1126:10, after which it abruptly dropped. The descent accelerated from about 500 fpm between 1126 and 1126:12 to more than 1,500 fpm after 1126:12.