History of Flight
On August 29, 2022, at approximately 1250 eastern daylight time, an Aeronca 7AC, registration N1478E, was destroyed in an accident near Jacksboro, Tennessee. The private pilot, the sole occupant, sustained fatal injuries. The flight was conducted under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight.
According to a friend of the pilot, the pilot had purchased the airplane the day before the accident. He flew it from Alabama to Tennessee, and this flight was his first in 20 years. On the day of the accident, he expressed a desire to "take it up for a flight." The friend observed the takeoff, noting that the airplane used little runway and departed "real early." After becoming airborne, the airplane made a sharp left turn and descended below the tree line. The friend contacted authorities and waited for their arrival.
Review of video footage recorded by the pilot's friend showed the airplane becoming airborne and entering a slow-speed, nose-high climb that continued into a left turn. The airplane then pitched nose-down and began descending while the engine was heard operating smoothly and continuously until ground contact.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The airplane came to rest nose-down in a field adjacent to the runway, oriented on a magnetic heading of 023°. Flight control continuity was established to all primary flight control surfaces. The nose of the airplane was crushed aft to the cockpit, and the engine and avionics instruments were destroyed by impact. The wings remained attached to the fuselage and exhibited impact damage, including accordion-style crush damage along the leading edges. The empennage was bent over the fuselage but remained partially attached.
The engine's crankshaft could not be rotated due to impact damage, and cylinder compression could not be confirmed. The spark plugs were removed for examination; the electrodes exhibited normal wear and were dark in color compared to a Champion Check-a-Plug chart, with no evidence of fouling. The left magneto produced spark on all leads, but the right magneto did not produce any spark due to impact damage to the impulse coupling. The oil screen was removed and was free of debris. The carburetor bowl was clean, and the float moved freely. The right side of the engine case, between the cylinders, was impact-fractured with a crack measuring about 6 inches.
Fuel was found inside the lines from the fuel pump to the carburetor. The fuel strainer was opened, and the screen was clean and unobstructed. The lever-action pumps functioned normally when operated by hand.
Examination of the airframe and engine did not reveal evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.
Medical and Pathological Information
The Regional Forensic Center of Knox County performed the pilot's autopsy, as authorized by the Campbell County Medical Examiner. According to the autopsy report, the cause of death was multiple and massive blunt force injuries, and the manner of death was accident.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Forensic Sciences Laboratory performed toxicological testing of postmortem specimens of the pilot. Diphenhydramine, clopidogrel, and amlodipine were detected in cavity blood and urine.
Diphenhydramine is a sedating antihistamine medication widely available over the counter in multiple sleep aids and cold and allergy products. It can cause cognitive and psychomotor slowing and drowsiness and often carries a warning that it may impair performance of tasks like driving and operating heavy machinery. The typical elimination half-life of diphenhydramine in plasma is about 3 to 14 hours. The FAA states that pilots should not fly within 60 hours of using diphenhydramine. Clopidogrel is a prescription medication that prevents clotting, used to treat patients with previous histories of heart attacks and to reduce the risk of subsequent heart attacks or recurrent strokes. Amlodipine is a prescription medication commonly used to treat high blood pressure, chronic stable angina, and as part of the medical management of coronary artery disease.