# Accident 20020427015099A: Amtr BUCCANEERII, Estero Bay, FL, April 27, 2002 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: April 27, 2002, 16:00 local time - Place: Estero Bay, FL - Damage: Destroyed - Phase of flight: Normal Cruise - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 26.4667° N, 81.9833° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=26.4667&lon=-81.9833&mi=10 - Aircraft: N8127W, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N8127W-2003-01-06) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Hartman Richard J BUCCANEER II (registry code 9570838, https://openairdocs.org/model/hartman-richard-j-buccaneer-ii) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Bombardier ROTAX (ALL) (registry code 09050, https://openairdocs.org/engine/bombardier-rotax-all) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: AMTR BUCCANEERII - Reported engine: ROTAX ROTAX447 - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 1 - Pilot flight hours: 265 total - NTSB investigation: [NTSB ATL02LA092](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL02LA092) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020427015099A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (-23) ON APRIL 27, 2002, AT APPROXIMATELY 1600 LOCAL TIME, AN EXPERIMENTAL AMATEUR-BUILT AIRCRAFT MODEL BUCCANEER II, N8127W, REGISTERED TO ROBERT C. PIERCE, III COLLIDED WITH THE WATER AT ESTERO BAY OFF FT. MYERS BEACH, FLORIDA. THE AIRCRAFT WAS FLYING SOUTH AND TURNED WEST AT A 45 DEGREE ANGLE INTO THE WIND. THE RIGHT WING DROPPED AND THE AIRCRAFT SPUN INTO THE BAY. THE PILOT WAS ON A PLEASURE FLIGHT WITH HIS GERMAN SHEPHERD DOG. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME. THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED AND THE PRIVATE PILOT SUSTAINED FATAL INJURIES. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM THE BEACH. (.4) ON APRIL 27, 2002, AT 1615 EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME, A HARTMAN BUCCANEER 2 EXPERIMENTAL AIRPLANE, N8127W, REGISTERED TO A PRIVATE OWNER, OPERATING AS A TITLE 14 CFR PART 91 PERSONAL FLIGHT, CRASHED INTO ESTERO BAY, ESTERO, FLORIDA, WHILE MANEUVERING. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE AIRPLANE WAS DESTROYED. THE PRIVATE PILOT SUSTAINED FATAL INJURIES. THE FLIGHT DEPARTED FROM AN UNKNOWN LOCATION AT AN UNKNOWN TIME. WITNESSES STATED THEY WERE ON THEIR BOAT IN ESTERO BAY. AN AIR PLANE WAS OBSERVED FLYING OVERHEAD BETWEEN 150 TO 200 FEET. THE AIRPLANE WAS OBSERVED TO MAKE A HARD RIGHT TURN ESTIMATED AT MORE THAN A 45-DEGREE RIGHT BANK INTO A STRONG WIND. THE RIGHT WING DROPPED, THE NOSE PITCHED DOWN, AND THE AIRPLANE STARTED SPINNING TO THE RIGHT BEFORE IT COLLIDED WITH THE BAY. BOATERS WENT OVER TO ASSIST AND THE PILOT AND A DOG WERE REMOVED FROM THE WRECKAGE. REVIEW OF SPECIFICATIONS FOR THE BUCCANEER AMPHIBIAN AIRPLANE REVEALED THE STALL SPEED IS 25 MPH. DUE TO THE EXTENT OF DAMAGE TO THE AIRPLANE, THE FAA INSPECTOR WHO TRAVELED TO THE SITE WAS UNABLE TO CONDUCT AN AIRFRAME, FLIGHT CONTROL, AND ENGINE ASSEMBLY EXAMINATION. THE HOUR METER FOUND IN THE WRECKAGE READ 43.6 HOURS. ACCORDING TO THE PARENTS OF THE PILOT, THEY WERE UNABLE TO LOCATE THE AIRCRAFT RECORDS OR THE PILOT'S LOGBOOK. THE AIRPLANE WRECKAGE WAS RECOVERED BY SEA TOW TOWING, CAPE CORAL, FLORIDA, AND WAS SOLD AS SCRAP. THE NEAREST WEATHER REPORTING FACILITY AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT WAS FORT MYERS, FLORIDA. THE 1553 SURFACE WEATHER OBSERVATION WAS: 6,500 SCATTERED, VISIBILITY 10 MILES, TEMPERATURE 90 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT, DEW POINT TEMPERATURE 61 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT, WIND 140-DEGREES AT 10 KNOTS, AND ALTIMETER 30.10. THE ASSOCIATE MEDICAL EXAMINER, DISTRICT 21, FORT MYERS, FLORIDA, CONDUCTED POSTMORTEM EXAMINATION OF THE PILOT ON APRIL 29, 2002. THE CAUSE OF DEATH WAS MULTIPLE BLUNT FORCE TRAUMA. POSTMORTEM TOXICOLOGY OF SPECIMENS FROM THE PILOT WAS PERFORMED BY THE FORENSIC TOXICOLOGY RESEARCH SECTION, FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA. THE RESULTS WERE NEGATIVE FOR CARBON MONOXIDE, CYANIDE, ETHANOL, BASIC, ACIDIC, AND NEUTRAL DRUGS. ## 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 ATL02LA092](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL02LA092), Apr 27, 2002: Hartman Buccaneer 2 (N8127W), Estero Bay, FL, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control for undetermined reasons. ## Other reports on N8127W (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Incident 19940320009579I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19940320009579I), Mar 20, 1994: Amtrad BUCCANEER (N8127W), Tarpon Springs, FL, Minor damage. Narrative: pilot stated that during cruise flight the prop splintered and caused the engine to stall. Aircraft made a landing in the intercoastal water way.… 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.