History of Flight
On January 29, 2024, at 1441 central standard time, a Lockwood Air Cam, registration N315GW, was substantially damaged when it struck a meteorological tower near Ranchitos Las Lomas, Texas. The pilot and passenger sustained fatal injuries. The flight was conducted under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight.
According to family members, the pilot frequently flew over the family ranch in his helicopter before completing construction of the Air Cam in September 2023. Multiple witnesses reported that the airplane overflew the ranch headquarters, followed a gas pipeline right-of-way to the southeast, and impacted a 197-ft MET tower at an altitude of about 192 ft above ground level. After impact, the airplane rolled inverted and struck the ground nose-first. The fuselage and both wings sustained substantial damage.
Personnel Information
The pilot had completed a BasicMed course on March 3, 2023, and held an expired FAA third-class medical certificate dated April 25, 2017. His last medical application in 2021 listed total flight time as 13,000 hours. From September 2023, he had flown the accident airplane for 95.6 hours, many of which were conducted around the family ranch.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The accident site was located in flat, dry desert about 240 ft southeast of the tower. The debris path extended from the tower on a magnetic heading of 134° to the main wreckage. The outboard 9.5 ft of the left wing was found about 20 ft northwest of the main wreckage. The left wing tip leading edge had crush damage about 2 ft in length with separation of the forward spar; the separated aft spar showed witness marks consistent with wire impact.
The main wreckage consisted of the fuselage, empennage, right wing, and inboard structure of the left wing. Both engines remained attached to the airframe. The left engine's propeller assembly was attached, but all three composite blades were separated outboard of the hub. The right engine's propeller assembly had one blade intact with no leading-edge damage, one fractured at ground level still attached, and one fractured and separated midspan.
Crush damage prevented review of most flight instruments. The altimeter was intact with 30.36 inHg selected; the airspeed indicator needle indicated 92 mph with the faceplate broken. Postaccident evaluation revealed no mechanical failures or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation.
Additional Information
The MET tower was a steel 60M XHD Tall tower manufactured by NRG System and operated by Apex Energy. It was 197 ft tall with four sets of guy wires at 90° separation extending about 107 ft. Each guy wire set consisted of six individual wires connected to a cradle around the mast. The tower was painted and marked in accordance with FAA Advisory Circulars for unlit obstructions; each top wire set had two high-visibility marker balls. The mast was painted in seven alternating 28-ft sections of aviation orange and white. The tower was not registered with the FAA nor required to be, and was not listed in the voluntary obstacle database or on government aeronautical charts. It was registered with the Texas Department of Transportation.
Other Damage
The initial impact point with the tower was at about 192 ft agl, consisting of paint transfer marks and crushing of the mast. The top section of the tower bent southward. A weather anemometer structure on the west side at about 190 ft agl also bent southward. The north top guy wire separated near the upper marker ball; the upper section with the marker ball remained attached to the cradle and was found on the south side. The lower marker ball and remaining wire separated and were found coiled at the guy wire footer, with bird caging consistent with overload.
Medical and Pathological Information
The Webb County Medical Examiner's Office performed an autopsy; the cause of death was multiple blunt force injuries, and the manner was accident. Structural evaluation of the heart was not possible due to injury; no significant natural disease was identified.
Postmortem toxicological testing detected delta-8-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-8-THC) at 7.9 ng/mL in cavity blood and 2.4 ng/mL in liver tissue; carboxy-delta-8-THC at 3.8 ng/mL in cavity blood and 79.9 ng/g in liver tissue; carboxy-delta-9-THC at 1.6 ng/mL in liver tissue (testing in cavity blood inconclusive); gabapentin at 1,557 ng/mL in cavity blood and 2,059 ng/mL in liver tissue; alprazolam at 5 ng/mL in liver tissue (not detected in cavity blood); and meloxicam in both cavity blood and liver tissue.
The source describes delta-8-THC as a psychoactive chemical similar to delta-9-THC, with potentially impairing cognitive and psychomotor effects. Gabapentin is a prescription medication that may cause sedation and dizziness; the FAA considers it a “Do Not Issue/Do Not Fly” medication. Alprazolam, a benzodiazepine, can cause sedation and psychomotor impairment; the FAA also considers it a “Do Not Issue/Do Not Fly” medication. Meloxicam is not generally considered impairing.