# Accident 19970401004029A: Cessna T337D, Hickory, PA, April 1, 1997 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: April 1, 1997, 14:52 local time - Place: Hickory, PA - Damage: Destroyed - Phase of flight: Normal Cruise - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 40.2991° N, 80.3193° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.2991&lon=-80.3193&mi=10 - Aircraft: N2685S, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N2685S-1998-05-27) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Cessna T337D (registry code 2075719, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-t337d) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA T337D - Reported engine: CONT IO360* - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 1 - NTSB investigation: [NTSB IAD97FA060](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD97FA060) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970401004029A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. PHOTOGRAPHIC MISSION , RADAR/RADIO CONTACT LOST. CRASHED. (.4) THE PILOT OF THE UNPRESSURIZED AIRPLANE WAS CLEARED TO CLIMB TO 25,000 FEET BY AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL (ATC) AND HE WAS OBSERVED GOING THROUGH THE ASSIGNED ALTITUDE AND LEVELING AT 27,700 FEET. THEN THE AIRCRAFT WAS OBSERVED AT 26,000 FEET, AND SUBSEQUENT CONTACT WAS LOST. THE PILOT DID NOT RESPOND WHEN ATC QUERIED HIM ABOUT EXCEEDING HIS ASSIGNED ALTITUDE. THE AIRCRAFT SUSTAINED AN INFLIGHT BREAKUP DURING AN UNCONTROLLED DESCENT, AND CAME TO REST IN A TREE. ACCORDING TO THE SURVIVING PASSENGER, THE AIRPLANE WAS REFUELED AND A PORTABLE OXYGEN BOTTLE WAS FILLED PRIOR TO TAKEOFF. SHE STATED THAT THEY WERE GOING TO TAKE AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS AT FOUR SEPARATE LOCATIONS DURING THIS FLIGHT. SHE SAID THAT THEY SHOT THREE OF THE LOCATIONS AND LANDED AT WILLIAMSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA WHERE THE PILOT FILED A FLIGHT PLAN AND SETUP THE PORTABLE OXYGEN SYSTEM FOR THEIR USE DURING THE NEXT FLIGHT. THEY DEPARTED AND CLIMBED TO 10,000 FEET, AND THE PILOT TOLD HER TO PUT HER OXYGEN MASK ON, AND HE DID THE SAME. THE LAST ALTITUDE SHE REMEMBERED THE PILOT CALLING OUT WAS 20,000 FEET, AND HE ASKED HER HOW SHE WAS DOING AND IF SHE FEL T OKAY AND SHE SAID YES. WHEN ASKED, 'WHO TURNED ON THE OXYGEN?' SHE STATED THAT SHE DID, STARTED TO BUT WASN'T SURE HOW, SO, THE PILOT REACHED BACK AND TURNED IT ON. SHE SAID SHE KNEW IT WAS ON BECAUSE SHE COULD FEEL THE COOL AIR AND THAT THERE WAS A LITTLE VALVE IN BOTH LINES AND THEY WENT FROM RED TO GREEN INDICATING THE OXYGEN WAS FLOWING. SHE SAID THAT SHE REMEMBERED HIM SAYING THAT THEY HAD JUST CROSSED 20,000 FEET AND SHE BEGAN FEELING DIZZY, SHE SAID THAT HER EYES WOULD NOT FOCUS, AND THAT SHE FELT LIKE SHE WAS CROSS EYED. SHE SAID SHE TOLD THE PILOT THAT SHE WAS DIZZY BUT SHE THOUGHT THAT HE WAS TALKING TO THE TOWER BECAUSE HE DID NOT RESPOND. SHE RECALLED THAT SHE FELT BETTER WHEN SHE CLOSED HER EYES, WHEN SHE DID, THAT WAS THE LAST THING SHE CLEARLY REMEMBERED UNTIL AFTER THE CRASH. ANALYTICAL TESTING OF THE CONTENTS OF EACH CYLINDER USED TO FILL THE PILOT'S OXYGEN BOTTLE FOUND THAT THEY CONTAINED COMPRESSED BREATHING AIR AT ABOUT 21 PERCENT OXYGEN INSTEAD OF AVIATION OXYGEN. POSTMORTEM EXAMINATION REVEALED THE PILOT'S DEATH WAS A RESULT OF HYPOXIC HYPOXIA DUE TO INSUFFICIENT OXYGEN REACHING THE BLOOD. ## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB IAD97FA060](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD97FA060), Apr 1, 1997: Cessna 337D (N2685S), Hickory, PA, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: Servicing of the pilots portable oxygen system with compressed air, which resulted in pilot incapacitation due to Hypoxia. ## Other reports on N2685S (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Accident 19800229004359A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19800229004359A), Feb 29, 1980: Cessna T337D (N2685S), East Liverpool, OH, Substantial damage. Pilot attempted a go-around from a downwind landing, but hit the ground and ran off the runway. From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.