# Accident 20010331006169A: Amtr VARIEZ, Pinson, AL, March 31, 2001 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: March 31, 2001, 09:40 local time - Place: Pinson, AL - Damage: Destroyed - Phase of flight: Normal Cruise - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 33.7467° N, 86.6278° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.7467&lon=-86.6278&mi=10 - Aircraft: N49LK, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N49LK-2018-01-19) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Kinsey Larry R VARIEZ 0-235 (registry code 056904M, https://openairdocs.org/model/kinsey-larry-r-variez-0-235) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Lycoming 0-235 series (registry code 41505, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-235-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: AMTR VARIEZ - Reported engine: LYC O235C1B - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 1 - Pilot flight hours: 832 total, 606 in this make and model, 21 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB MIA01LA113](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA01LA113) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20010331006169A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (-23) PILOT DEPARTED TUSCALOOSA AT APPROX. 09:10 LOCAL ON 3/31/01 IN VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS FOR GADSDEN WITHOUT FILING A FLIGHT PLAN. THE WEATHER AT BIRMINGHAM BETWEEN 08:55 AND 9:53 LOCAL SHOWED WIND FROM THE WEST AT 8 TO 9 KNOTS WITH A VISIBILITY OF 3 MILES WITH LIGHT DRIZZLE AT 08:55 AND FOG AT 09:53. THE CEILING AT BIRMINGHAM AT 08:55 WAS 500 FEET OVERCAST AND VARIABLE FROM 300 TO 600 FEET AND THE CEILING REMAINED AT 500 FEET OVERCAST AT 09:53. N49LK UNDER CONTROLLED FLIGHT, FLEW INTO THE SIDE OF A MOUNTAIN APPROX. 50 FEET BELOW THE PEAK. (.19) ON MARCH 31, 2002, ABOUT 0930 CST, A LARRY R. KINSEY O-235, N49LK, REGISTERED TO AN INDIVIDUAL, COLLIDES WITH TERRAIN NEAR PINSON, ALABAMA, WHILE ON A TITLE 14 CFR PART 91 PERSONAL FLIGHT. INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDTIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME, AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE AIRPLANE WAS DESTROYED AND THE PRIVATE-RATED PILOT RECEIVED FATAL INJURIES. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA, ON MARCH 31, 2001, AT 0910 CST. ACCORDING TO MEMBERS OF THE PILOT'S FAMILY, THE PILOT WAS FLYING FROM TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA, TO GADSDEN, AL. WHEN THE FLIGHT DID NOT ARRIVE, SEARCH OPERATIONS WERE INITIATED. THE AIRPLANE WRECKAGE WAS LOCATED ON APRIL 6, 2001, ABOUT 1600. (.4) THE FLIGHT DEPARTED TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA, ENROUTE TO GADSDEN, ALABAMA. WHEN THE FLIGHT DID NOT ARRIVE, SEARCH AND RESCUE OPERATIONS WERE INITIATED. THE AIRPLANE WRECKAGE WAS LOCATED ON APRIL 6, 2001, AT ABOUT THE 1,000 FOOT MSL LEVEL, ON THE WEST SIDE OF VILLAGE MOUNTAIN, NEAR PINSON, ALABAMA. EXAMINATION OF THE CRASH SITE SHOWED THE AIRPLANE HAD FLOWN FROM A VALLEY, EASTERLY, INTO RISING TERRAIN. THE AIRPLANE CRASHED INTO TREES WHILE IN CRUI SE FLIGHT AND CAME TO REST ABOUT 100 FEET FROM THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN. ALL COMPONENTS OF THE AIRPLANE WERE LOCATED AT THE CRASH SITE. POST CRASH EXAMINATION OF THE AIRCRAFT STRUCTURE, FLIGHT CONTROLS, ENGINE, AND PROPELLER, SHOWED NO EVIDENCE OF PRECRASH FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION. THE BIRMINGHAM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT SURFACE OBSERVATION TAKEN ABOUT 13 MINUTES AFTER THE ACCIDENT WAS CLOUDS 500 FEET OVERCAST WITH VISIBILITY 3 MILES IN DRIZZLE. BIRMINGHAM IS LOCATED 15 STATUTE MILES SOUTH-SOUTHEAST OF THE ACCIDENT SITE, AT AN ELEVATION OF 636 FEET MSL. THE PERSON WHO LIVES IN THE RESIDENCE ADJACENT TO THE ACCIDENT SITE REPORTED THAT ON THE DAY OF THE ACCIDENT THE CLOUDS OBSCURED THE MOUNTAIN AND VISIBILITY WAS LOW ALL DAY. THE FAA HAD NO RECORD THAT THE PILOT HAD RECEIVED A WEATHER BRIEFING FROM AN FAA FACILITY. ## 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 MIA01LA113](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA01LA113), Mar 31, 2001: Larry R. Kinsey Variez O-235 (N49LK), Pinson, AL, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's continued visual flight rules flight into instrument meteorological conditions resulting in the airplane colliding with mountainous terrain. ## Other reports on N49LK (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Incident 19960403005929I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19960403005929I), Apr 3, 1996: Amtrru VARIEZE (N49LK), Tuscaloosa, AL, Minor damage. Narrative: both main landing gear collapsed on landing. Investigation revealed the mount brackets that attach the landing gear to the airframe separated. It… 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.