History of Flight
On October 27, 2023, about 1345 mountain daylight time, a Cessna T206H, registration N915DV, was involved in an accident near Huntington, Utah. The aircraft sustained substantial damage and the pilot received fatal injuries. The flight was conducted under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight.
According to a family member, the pilot had flown earlier that morning from his base airport in Craig, Colorado, to Vernal, Utah. After approximately two hours in Vernal, the pilot departed with a planned destination of Cedar City, Utah.
ADS-B data showed the airplane departed Vernal to the southwest around 1300, proceeding west to Bottle Hollow Reservoir. By about 1310, the aircraft headed on a southwest course and climbed to roughly 8,300 ft mean sea level (msl). At 1318, it climbed to about 8,800 ft and maintained that altitude and heading until data ended at 1345. The final data point was adjacent to the wreckage location, near the peak of a hill.
A Foreflight account associated with the pilot showed no flights created for the accident date, which would have been required to receive a briefing. However, multiple routes were entered that day between Twin Falls, Idaho (KTWF), Craig, Colorado (KCAG), and Vernal, Utah (KVEL). Route planning generates flight time, fuel calculations, and weather information, but not a formal briefing. No weather information was viewed in the app before the flight.
Wreckage and Impact Information
Examination of the wreckage revealed that the left wing had separated from the fuselage and was broken into inboard and outboard sections. The right wing displayed leading-edge crush and thermal damage near the fuel tank. The fuselage, cockpit, passenger cabin, and empennage sustained extensive thermal damage, and the cabin structure exhibited significant crush deformation. Full flight control continuity could not be confirmed due to impact and fire damage, though several cable runs showed tensile breaks and recovery cuts. Trim system components were heavily damaged; the trim tab was observed in the nose-up position. The flap actuator measurement indicated fully retracted flaps at impact.
Fuel system examination showed the left tank mostly intact but breached and fire-damaged. The fuel selector was in the BOTH position with its strainer screen free of major debris. Both fuel caps were recovered with pliable gaskets. The instrument panel and flight displays were almost completely consumed by fire, preventing recovery of cockpit configuration or instrumentation data.
The engine was intact but exhibited extensive impact and thermal damage. The crankcase had multiple fractures, with all six cylinders attached; left-side cylinders were severely fragmented. The engine could not be rotated by hand, precluding compression testing. Mechanical continuity was confirmed visually through borescope inspection; both camshaft and crankshaft assemblies were intact with no signs of fractures, cracking, or bearing distress. All connecting rods remained securely attached.
Accessory housing examination showed the crankshaft gear and dowel intact, with idler gears and oil pump undamaged. The engine-driven fuel, vacuum, and hydraulic pump drives were secured and undamaged. The left magneto had separated with impact and thermal damage; the right magneto remained attached but was inoperative consistent with thermal damage. Several spark plugs were destroyed or unavailable; others were intact with heat-related discoloration. All ignition leads were destroyed.
The exhaust system remained structurally attached, routing gases through the heat shroud and turbocharger assembly before exiting through the tailpipe. The turbocharger had separated due to impact, with compressor wheel damage consistent with rotation at impact.
The fuel system was heavily damaged; the engine-driven fuel pump and servo diaphragms were destroyed by fire. The throttle and mixture controls remained connected.
The propeller hub was fractured, with a fragment secured to the crankshaft flange. All three blades separated and exhibited leading-edge gouging, torsional twisting, chordwise striations, and S-bending along the trailing edges, consistent with absorbing significant rotational energy at impact.
No evidence of pre-impact mechanical malfunctions or failures was found. There was no evidence of an in-flight impact with wildlife. Samples from the airplane were examined by specialists from the Smithsonian Institution’s Feather Identification Lab using DNA and microscopic analysis; none contained bird material.
Medical and Pathological Information
The Utah Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Medical Examiner, performed the pilot’s autopsy. According to the autopsy report, the cause of death was blunt force injuries and the manner was accident. Due to the extent of injuries, the autopsy was limited.
Postmortem toxicological testing by the FAA Forensic Sciences Laboratory detected cetirizine in liver tissue but not in muscle tissue. Norchlorcyclizine was detected in both liver and muscle tissue.