Accident Overview
On September 23, 2020, at about 0750 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-25 airplane, registration N6106Z, was destroyed when it struck a tree and caught fire near Floral City, Florida. The pilot, who was the sole occupant, sustained fatal injuries. The aircraft was operating under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 137 as an aerial application flight.
Witness Accounts
A flight instructor at nearby Inverness Airport (INF) observed the pilot loading chemicals and departing runway 19. After the instructor’s own departure, he watched the accident airplane spraying fields south of INF. A solo student pilot in the traffic pattern at INF reported that while turning right downwind for runway 01, he glanced down and saw the airplane “spraying” and then “he pitched up to clear something and then abruptly went down.” Shortly after, fire and smoke were seen from where the airplane disappeared. A witness on a tractor in a nearby farm field reported observing the airplane spraying west-to-east; it “dipped down two times, coming down near the trees and then coming back up.” On its third approach, the airplane was “real low” and the witness never saw it come back up; black smoke and explosions followed.
Post-Crash Examination
A Federal Aviation Administration inspector found the main wreckage inverted in a row of trees bordering the field being sprayed. A postcrash fire consumed most of the fuselage, but all primary flight controls were present. About 350 ft west of the main wreckage, a large dead tree exhibited broken branches and components of agricultural spraying equipment near its base. The spraying equipment was found about 25 ft east of the tree. Examination of the engine and airframe at a recovery facility established continuity for all flight controls, the crankshaft, camshaft, and pistons. The propeller blades were bent slightly aft, with one tip showing “S” bending. The agricultural spraying fan had impact damage on its nose cone. No anomalies were found that would have precluded normal operation.
Pilot Information
The commercial pilot held a second-class medical certificate issued April 13, 2020, with a corrective lenses limitation. At that examination, he reported no medications and resolved diagnoses of diabetes and high blood pressure. However, his spouse reported that at the time of the accident he was taking medications for diabetes, high blood pressure, and gastric reflux. An autopsy listed the cause of death as multiple blunt force injuries from an airplane collision and the manner as accident. The medical examiner noted 60% atherosclerosis in the left anterior descending coronary artery and moderate aortic atherosclerosis.
Toxicology
Toxicology testing by the FAA Forensic Sciences Laboratory and the medical examiner’s office identified glipizide (a diabetes medication) in blood and urine. Postmortem findings included elevated vitreous fluid and urine glucose, and a hemoglobin A1C of 6.3%. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the primary psychoactive compound in cannabis, was detected at 6.5 ng/mL in blood and 6.7 ng/mL in urine; its psychoactive metabolite 11-hydroxy-delta-9-THC was present at 1.2 ng/mL in blood and 77.9 ng/mL in urine; and the inactive metabolite THC-COOH was found at 31 ng/mL in blood and 671.3 ng/mL in urine.
Environmental Conditions
Sunrise occurred at 0718, and winds at INF were calm. The solar calculator indicated an azimuth of 93.76° and elevation of 6.21° at accident time, placing the sun in the pilot’s eyes, as noted by one witness.