# Accident 20080801841989A: Amtr LANCAIRES, August 1, 2008

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 1, 2008, 14:33 local time
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 47.0522° N, 121.2256° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=47.0522&lon=-121.2256&mi=10
- Aircraft: N45EL, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N45EL-2018-01-24) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Long Eugene C LANCAIR ES (registry code 05615W4, https://openairdocs.org/model/long-eugene-c-lancair-es) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental IO-550 series (registry code 17042, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-550-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AMTR LANCAIRES
- Reported engine: CONT IO550N
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Pilot flight hours: 500 total, 200 in this make and model, 0 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX08LA253](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX08LA253) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20080801841989A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) AT APPROXIMATELY 9, 700' MLS ARTCC LOSES RADAR AND RADIO CONTACT WITH AIRCRAFT ON IFR FLIGHT PLAN. AIRCRAFT WRECKAGE IS SUBSEQUENTLY FOUND IN TIMBERED AREA, WITH THE ACCIDENT FATAL FOR BOTH OCCUPANTS. AIRCRAFT EXPERIENCES VARYING RATES OF DESCENT DURING FINAL 48 SECONDS OF FLIGHT, BOTH UP AND DOWN, RANGING FROM 500' FPM TO 3,500' FPM. COMPUTED DESCENT RATE FOR THE AIRCRAFT IN THE LAST 12 SECONDS OF RADAR RECORDED FLIGHT YIELDS A DESCENT RATE OF 3,500' FPM. AIRCRAFT DISCOVERED IN MULTIPLE SECTIONS, LOCATED SEPARATE FROM EACH OTHER, INDICATIVE OF INFLIGHT BREAKUP. BODIES OF THE DECEASED WERE FOUND COMPLETELY SEPARATE OF THE CABIN AREA, APPROXIMATELY 50-100 YARDS AWAY. AIRMAN OBTAINED THREE WEATHER BRIEFINGS PRIOR TO THE FLIGHT, TWO PHONE BRIEFINGS, ONE THE NIGHT BEFORE, THE SECOND THE DAY OF THE FLIGHT. AIRMAN ALSO RECEIVED A WALK-IN OVER THE COUNTER BRIEFING AT THE FSS AT THE AIRPORT OF DEPARTURE, JUST PRIOR TO THE FLIGHT.

## 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 LAX08LA253](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX08LA253), Aug 1, 2008: Long Lancair ES (N45EL), Cliffdell, WA, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control while in cruise flight due to spatial disorientation. Contributing to the accident was turbulence and clouds.

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.

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