20111008022659A

ON 10/08/2011 AT 15:30 IWAS CALLED BY THE ATLANTA FAA CENTER AND TOLD THAT AN AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT THAT HAD OCCURRED AT 14:51 IN THOMASVILLE, GA., 8 MILES NORTH OF FLORIDA AND 6 MILES WEST OF QUITMAN, GA. A CONFERENCE CALL WAS BEING PROVIDED BETWEEN THE NTSB AND THE BROOKS COUNTY SHERRIFF'S DEPARTMENT AND MY SELF TO DISCUSS AND PLAN HOW THE ACCIDENT WAS GOING TO BE HANDLED. I LISTENED AS THE NTSB AGENT; PAUL COX EXPLAINED THAT A 1941 LUSCOMBE, N41907 HAD CRASHED WITH 2 SOULS ON BOARD AND THAT THE PASSENGER WAS A FATALITY AT THE SCENE. THE PILOT'S NAME WAS ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ AND THE PASSENGER WAS ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. PAUL COX SPOKE TO SHERRIFF MIKE DEWEY AND CONFIRMED THE LOCATION OF THE CRASH AT ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^, 2.2 MILES EAST FROM A CELL PHONE TOWER USED TO TRIANGULATE THE CRASH. LOCATED AT COORDINATES ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. MR. COX THEN STATED THAT HE WAS GOING TO ASSIGN THE ACCIDENT TO JOSE OBRDEGON WITH ASSISTANCE FROM THE FAA (MYSELF). I GOT IN TOUCH WITH JOSE OBRDEGON AND WE AGREED TO MEET IN QUITMAN AT 11:00AM THE FOLLOWING DAY AND BE ESCORTED TO THE CRASH SCENE BY THE SHERRIFF'S DEPARTMENT. I DROVE DOWN TO THE ACCIDENT SCENE AND MET THE NTSB INSPECTOR AND THE SHERRIFF MIKE DEWEY. ON 10-09-11 AT 11:00, I ARRIVED AT THE COORDINATES OF THE FARM LOCATED IN DIXIE, GA 31629 BETWEEN ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. THE AIRCRAFT WAS LAYING ON IT'S RIGHT SIDE ABOUT 50 FEET INTO THE TREE LINE. BEHIND THE AIRCRAFT WAS A CUT AND CLEARED FIELD OF GRASS APROXIMATELY 2000 FEET ACROSS BEFORE ANY OBSTRUCTIONS COULD BE MET, BUT IT HAD NO TIRE PRINTS FROM THE AIRCRAFT ON IT. THE PLANE HAD STRUCK THE TREES ABOUT 6 FOOT ABOVE THE GROUND. IMPACT WITH THE TREES SHEARED OFF THE R/H WING AND IT WAS LYING IN FRONT OF TWO SMALL PINES. THE L/H WING WAS FOLDED, LAYING OVER THE NOSE OF THE AIRCRAFT, SLUNG OVER THE BY THE FORCE OF BEING STOPPED BY A TREE. EXCEPT FOR A SLIGHT BEND IN THE PROPELLOR, IT HAD NOT SUSTAINED ANY DAMAGE FROM STRIKES. THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE COCKPIT WAS RUPTURED OPEN AND FOLDED BACK BEHIND THE COCKPIT AREA . THE SINGLE LAP BELTS DID NOT HOLD THE OCCUPANTS IN SECURELY AND THE PASSENGER WAS EJECTED FROM THE AIRCRAFT R/H SIDE BY THE IMPACT WITH THE TREES. THE PASSENGER SIDE WAS COMPLETELY RIPPED OPEN AND THE INSTRUMENT PANEL AND WINDSHIELD SUPPORT STRUT WERE BENT FORWARD BY IMPACT OF THE PASSENGER. THERE WAS NO FIRE AND THE FUEL TANK WAS LYING ABOUT 25 FEET IN FRONT OF THE AIRCRAFT. IT HAD DRAINED MOST OF THE FUEL INTO THE GROUND. THE WRECKAGE WAS CONFINED TO AN AREA OF ABOUT 30 FEET. I PHOTOGRAPHED THE AREA AND OUTLAYING AIRCRAFT PIECES. THE NTSB AGENT AND I PHYSICALLY OPERATED THE FLIGHT CONTROLS NOTING FREEDOM OF CABLE AND PUSH ROD MOVEMENT. ALL WORKED. WE THEN EXAMINED THE AIRCRAFT ENGINE AND IT WAS DECIDED THAT THE ENGINE REQUIRED FURTHER INVESTIGATION. THE AIRCRAFT WAS MOVED TO A LOCATION NEAR MONTICELLO, FL AT THE REQUEST OF THE NTSB. WE SUPERVISED THE MOVEMENT FROM THE CRASH SITE AND THEN WENT TO THE SHERIFFS OFFICE THAT NIGHT TO SIGN FOR THE AIRCRAFT AIRWORTHINESS CERTIFICATE, RADIO AND OTHER ITEMS COLLECTED BY THE SHERRIFF AND COUNTY CORONER, MIKE MILLER. WE WERE THEN TAKEN TO THE THOMASVILLE, GA. HOSPITAL BY THE SHERRIFF MIKE DEWEY AND WE INTERVIEWED THE PILOT ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. I WROTE HIS STATEMENT AS HE SAID IT BECAUSE HE COULD NOT WRITE DUE TO INJURIES SUSTAINED IN THE CRASH. THE INTERVIEW WAS FINISHED AT ABOUT 21:10 AND WE HEADED FOR VALDOSTA, GA. TO GET A ROOM FOR THE NIGHT. AT 07:00 THE NEXT MORNING,WE DEPARTED VALDOSTA AND DROVE TO THE WRECKING YARD NEAR MONTICELLO, FL. WHERE THE DAY WAS SPENT IN DISASSEMBLY OF THE AIRFRAME AND ENGINE. WHEN THE ENGINE COWLING WAS REMOVED, IT WAS NOTED THAT THE TOP AFT END OF THE ENGINE CASING HAD BEEN RUPTURED FROM THE INSIDE OUT AND THAT THE NUMBER 2 CYLINDER ROD END WAS BADLY HAMMERED AND MALFORMED BY THE MAIN CRANK.