Accident Overview
On May 25, 2024, at approximately 2155 eastern daylight time, an amateur-built Glasair 1 RG, registration N446KW, sustained substantial damage during an accident near Panacea, Florida. The private pilot, who was operating the airplane under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight, received fatal injuries.
Flight History
The pilot departed Zephyrhills Municipal Airport (ZPH) at 1249 on the day of the accident, flying to Destin Executive Airport (DTS) and arriving at 1449. Later that evening, the pilot departed DTS on a return flight to ZPH with flight following from air traffic control (ATC). The airplane initially transmitted a discrete beacon code of 1045. Flight track data indicates the airplane departed runway 14 at DTS at 2101, made a left turn to the east-southeast, and climbed to a cruising altitude of about 6,500 feet. At 2149, ground speed and altitude began fluctuating, and the airplane made an abrupt right turn of about 90° of track change. It then entered a left turn, and at 2151, the altitude peaked at approximately 7,300 feet before it entered a counterclockwise spiraling descent. Ground speed fluctuated during the descent until the track data was lost approximately 200 feet above the waters of Apalachee Bay. At 2154, ATC received a distress call from the pilot stating, “I’m going down in Apalachee Bay.” ATC issued an alert notice at 2216 and coordinated with the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, the Wakulla County Sheriff’s Office, and the FAA regional communications center, who then contacted the United States Coast Guard (USCG) for search and rescue. Another pilot on the same frequency overflew the area but reported it was very dark and hazy, with no sighting.
Search and Recovery
On May 26, 2024, at 0028, the wreckage was discovered by the USCG and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) in 13 to 15 feet of water, about 7 miles east of Bald Point State Park in Apalachee Bay. The airplane rested on a sand shoal in a nose and left wing down position, with the empennage visible above water. FWC divers began victim recovery efforts, and Sea Tow Big Bend located the marker buoy at about 1000. Weather deteriorated, and wind and wave action scattered the wreckage. On May 28, Sea Tow Big Bend used side scan sonar to locate the nose section and towed it ashore. Officers from the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office recovered the wings with the carry-through structure, one winglet, and the aft fuselage near the mouth of the Econfina River after they had drifted from the accident site.
Wreckage Examination
On June 4, 2024, the NTSB examined the recovered wreckage at the Taylor County Sheriff’s Emergency Operations Center. The aft fuselage with the empennage attached had separated from the rest of the fuselage just aft of the instrument panel. The rudder and both elevators remained attached; the left elevator had minimal damage, and the right elevator’s lower panel was separated. The windshield and both gull wing doors were missing. Both wings and the carry-through structure were separated from the fuselage. The left winglet was separated, and the pitot tube mast was separated from the bottom of the left wing. The left wing outboard fuel filler port was missing, with evidence of hydraulic separation; the left wing’s inboard fuel filler port was intact, but a 4-foot section of the upper composite surface near it was missing. The right wing was missing its winglet. All landing gear were in the retracted position, and wing flaps were set to 0°. Examination of pitot and static ports revealed no blockage. Flight control continuity was established from the rudder, elevator, and ailerons to breaks in the system and from those breaks to the respective controls.
Cockpit controls and instrumentation showed the throttle and mixture controls full forward, carburetor heat off, primer in and locked, landing gear switch up with the handle broken off, and wing flap handle at 0°. The manifold pressure gauge and tachometer were off-scale low; the airspeed indicator needle was frozen at about 190 knots. The vacuum-driven attitude indicator displayed a nose-down, left-wing-down attitude; the electric turn and bank indicator showed a left bank; the directional gyro indicated 202°; and the vertical speed indicator was frozen at a 600-foot-per-minute descent. Navigation lights, electric fuel pump, and turn and bank selector switches were on. The emergency locator transmitter (ELT) was attached but separated from its antenna, and the ELT switch was off.
Examination of the propeller and engine revealed that one blade of the two-bladed Prince P Tip Composite propeller had separated during impact; the remaining hub and blade were attached to the engine flange. The engine remained attached via the mount and firewall. Damage included bent exhaust tubes, abrasion on the ignition harness, and corrosion consistent with saltwater submersion. Spark plugs were removed, releasing an oil-water mixture from all four cylinders. The drivetrain rotated via the propeller, with thumb compression and suction evident on all cylinders and free rocker arm movement. The oil suction screen was installed and clear of debris; the oil filter was installed with a date of May 9, 2022, and no metallic debris, but carbon was present. The engine-driven fuel pump was installed but had saltwater corrosion; suction and compression were present when actuated. Both magnetos were installed but produced no spark due to water and corrosion; no evidence of preimpact failure was found. The carburetor was attached with a fractured housing at the attach flange; mixture and throttle arms were in full rich and full throttle positions. The brass floats had minor hydraulic crushing on one float, with no indication of leakage. The fuel inlet screen was clear.
According to FAA records, the airplane received its special airworthiness certificate on November 20, 2011. The pilot held a private pilot certificate with a single-engine land rating, and his most recent third-class medical was issued on April 6, 2023, reporting about 600 hours of total flight experience. Weather recorded at Tallahassee International Airport at 2153 included winds from 260° at 3 knots, 10 miles visibility, few clouds at 6,500 ft, scattered clouds at 25,000 ft, temperature 28°C, dew point 22°C, and an altimeter setting of 29.91 inches of mercury. The wreckage was retained for further examination.