History of Flight
On January 30, 2024, at 1029 Pacific standard time, an experimental amateur-built Vans RV-6 airplane, registered N30AK, was substantially damaged when it crashed near Concord, California. The pilot, the sole occupant, was fatally injured. The flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91 as a personal flight.
Witnesses reported the pilot had been performing touch-and-go landings and takeoffs in the traffic pattern, completing several successfully. During the accident takeoff, as the airplane climbed, the engine lost power. The nose lowered, then engine power momentarily resumed. The nose then pitched up, and the engine lost total power. The airplane banked left, the nose dropped, and it dove straight to the ground.
ADS-B data showed the airplane departed runway 19L at 1009:21, remained in the pattern for six touch-and-go circuits. After the seventh takeoff, it climbed to about 100 ft msl, then began a descending left turn. The last ADS-B target was at 1029:10, about 100 ft south of the main wreckage.
Video from airport cameras captured the final takeoff: the airplane climbed, nose lowered, then briefly climbed again. Soon after, it banked left and entered a near-vertical, nose-down descent, with left bank increasing.
Personnel Information
The pilot held a third-class medical certificate issued August 14, 2023, with a limitation requiring corrective lenses. On his application, he reported 8,786 total flight hours, with 36 in the last 6 months. His logbook showed 20 hours in the 90 days before the accident.
Review of the pilot's FAA medical file revealed a prior accident in 2000 involving a Beech M35 (N639V) in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he sustained a severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) affecting vision, left arm motor function, and neurocognitive skills. The FAA denied his medical applications in 2000 and 2001 due to incomplete documentation and a failed competency checkride attributed to multitasking difficulties and distractibility. In 2002, the FAA issued a general denial due to the TBI and neurocognitive deficits.
In 2003, the pilot applied under a different spelling of his name and a different social security number, omitting the TBI history, and received a third-class medical certificate. Subsequent certificates were issued between 2003 and 2023. The FAA identified the social security discrepancy in 2012 and merged the files but did not discover the undisclosed disqualifying condition.
Aircraft Information
The airplane's most recent engine logbook entry was November 21, 2023, for a 100-hour inspection, oil change, magneto timing, and pushrod tube replacement at an airframe total time of 2,157.8 hours and engine total time of 2,132.9 hours. Subsequent work orders included replacement of the left main tire and brake linings on December 19, 2023, and battery replacement on January 15, 2024.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The accident site was at the intersection of two streets, about 1,830 ft from the departure end of runway 19L. The airplane came to rest upright on a magnetic heading of 270°, with all major components within about 72 ft of the main wreckage. A 1-ft diameter crater containing propeller spinner pieces was located about 4 ft south of the wreckage. The engine was displaced left and compressed aft. Both wing leading edges were crushed aft, and both fuel tanks showed hydro deformation and were breached. Flight control continuity was confirmed.
Postaccident examination found the fuel pump output line B-nut, connecting to the carburetor fuel inlet filter screen fitting, was detached. The B-nut showed no impact damage, and threads on the B-nut and fitting were intact and undamaged.
Medical and Pathological Information
An autopsy by the Contra Costa County Sheriff-Coroner determined the cause of death as multiple extreme blunt force injuries, with the manner of death an accident.
Toxicology testing detected multiple substances in the pilot's blood, tissue, and urine: Delta-9-THC (psychoactive component of cannabis), 11-hydroxy-THC, Carboxy-delta-9-THC, Gabapentin, Codeine, Morphine, Hydrocodone, Dihydrocodeine, Atomoxetine, Trazodone, Metachlorophenylpiperazine, Memantine, Alfuzosin, and Guaifenesin. The FAA considers several of these (Gabapentin, Atomoxetine, Trazodone) as "do not issue/do not fly" medications. Codeine, an opioid, carries warnings about impairment and is generally disqualifying. Delta-9-THC may impair motor coordination, reaction time, decision-making, and vigilance.