# Accident 20191031020549A: Whitcomb Jack RV-4, Middleburg, FL, October 31, 2019 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: October 31, 2019, 17:30 local time - Place: Middleburg, FL - Damage: Destroyed - Phase of flight: Maneuver - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 30.0125° N, 81.7800° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.0125&lon=-81.7800&mi=10 - Aircraft: N425JW, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N425JW-2020-06-11) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Whitcomb Jack RV-4 (registry code 05623MB, https://openairdocs.org/model/whitcomb-jack-rv-4) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Lycoming O&VO-360 series (registry code 41514, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-o-vo-360-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: WHITCOMB JACK RV-4 - Reported engine: LYCOMING 0-360-A1A - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 1 - Other injuries: 0 - Pilot certificates: Airline transport - NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA20FA025](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA20FA025) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20191031020549A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. 10.31.2019. ASSIGNED CASE WHILE SERVING ACCIDENT TELEPHONE STANDBY DUTY FOR THE ORLANDO FSDO. AT APPROXIMATELY 5:30PM AIRCRAFT N425JW, A VANS RV-4 AIRCRAFT, WAS INVOLVED IN AN AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT IN A REMOTE LOCATION APPROXIMATELY 1.8 MILES EAST OF HIGHWAY 218 NEAR THE TOWN OF MIDDLEBURG, FL. THE AIRCRAFT HAD HIT POWER LINES, CAUGHT FIRE AND WAS DESTROYED. THE PILOT-IN-COMMAND WAS THE ONLY PERSON ON BOARD AND WAS FOUND DECEASED AT THE SCENE. WEATHER WAS VFR AND DOES NOT APPEAR TO HAVE BEEN A FACTOR. FAA ON-SCENE INVESTIGATION WAS COORDINATED WITH NTSB AND CONDUCTED ON THE MORNING OF 11.1.2019. PHOTOS WERE TAKEN AND THE SCENE WAS MAPPED, A FIRST RESPONDER WAS INTERVIEWED. IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE AIRCRAFT HAD DEPARTED THE HALLER AIRPARK (7FL4) AIRPORT. THE AIRPORT MANAGER WAS INTERVIEWED BY PHONE. ACCORDING TO THE HALLER AIRPARK AIRPORT MANAGER THE AIRCRAFT HAD DEPARTED AT APPROXIMATELY 1715L/2115Z ON 10.31.2019. THE AIRPORT MANAGER STATED HIS NEIGHBOR TOLD HIM THAT POWER HAD BEEN LOST IN THE AREA APPROXIMATELY 10-15 MINUTES LATER (WHEN HE NOTICED HIS GENERATOR CAME ON) WHICH IS PRESUMED TO BE THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. ON-SCENE INVESTIGATION CONFIRMED THE AIRCRAFT HAD SEVERED ONE OF THE LOWER HIGH TENSION POWER LINES AND DAMAGED OTHERS WHICH ACCORDING TO THE POWER COMPANY CREATED A WIDE SPREAD POWER OUTAGE IN THE AREA. DUE TO THE REMOTE AREA, NO WITNESSES HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED. AT 1929L THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT RECEIVED A CALL REGARDING THE DOWNED AIRCRAFT AND FIRE. IT HAD TAKEN FIRST RESPONDERS SOME TIME TO REACH THE AIRCRAFT AFTER THE ACCIDENT; THE MISSING AIRCRAFT HAD NOT BEEN REPORTED AND WAS ONLY DISCOVERED AS THE POWER OUTAGE WAS BEING INVESTIGATED. ON-SCENE INVESTIGATION CONFIRMED THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK POWER LINES APPROXIMATELY 9 MILES TO THE NORTHWEST OF HALLER AIRPARK. THE AIRCRAFT CAME TO A REST INVERTED APPROXIMATELY 134 YARDS FROM THE DAMAGE ON THE POWER LINES ON ROUGHLY A 330 DEGREE HEADING. PARTS WERE STREWN ACROSS THE DEBRIS FIELD TO THE NORTH OF THE POWER LINES IN BETWEEN WHERE THE AIRCRAFT HAD HIT THE POWER LINES AND WHERE THE MAIN WRECKAGE HAD COME TO A REST. AIRCRAFT/ENGINE TEARDOWN WAS CONDUCTED ON 11.3.2019, HOWEVER, AIRCRAFT/ENGINE TEARDOWN DID NOT REVEAL ANY ANOMALIES ACCORDING TO THE NTSB INSPECTOR THAT CONDUCTED THE INSPECTION. INVESTIGATION INDICATES THE PILOT MAY HAVE BEEN ATTEMPTING TO LAND IN THE CLEARED AREA CREATED BY THE HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION FOLLOWING SOME TYPE OF INFLIGHT EMERGENCY BUT HIT THE LOWEST HIGH TENSION POWER LINE. THIS PIC'S MOST RECENT VALID FAA MEDICAL CERTIFICATE HAD EXPIRED BUT HE WAS FLYING UNDER BASICMED. HE WAS MEDICALLY ELIGIBLE TO FLY AS LONG AS HE HAD A VALID DRIVERS LICENSE AND WAS IN COMPLIANCE WITH 14 CFR PART 68 REQUIREMENTS FOR OPERATING CERTAIN SMALL AIRCRAFT WITHOUT A MEDICAL CERTIFICATE, 14 CFR PART 61.53 PROHIBITION ON OPERATIONS DURING MEDICAL DEFICIENCY AND OTHER APPLICABLE FAA REGULATIONS. OF NOTE THE PIC HAD TAKEN TWO FAA WINGS PROGRAM "MEDICAL SELF-ASSESSMENT: A PILOT'S GUIDE TO FLYING HEALTHY" COURSES IN RECENT HISTORY; ONE ON 2.25.2017 AND ANOTHER ON 3.26.2019. HOWEVER, THESE COURSES MAYBE HAVE BEEN TAKEN AS AN INTRODUCTION TO THE BASICMED PROCESS. ACCORDING TO SPAS THE PIC HAD RECEIVED A BASICMED AUTHORIZATION ON 3.26.2019. TO DATE NO TOXICOLOGY REPORT HAS BEEN RECEIVED; THIS REPORT TO BE RE-OPENED AND AMENDED IF ANY SIGNIFICANT EVIDENCE IS DISCOVERED IN THIS REPORT. ACCIDENT INVEST 1702 PTRS#: SO15 202003026 ## 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 ERA20FA025](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA20FA025), Oct 31, 2019: Vans RV 4 (N425JW), Middleburg, FL, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: Impact with power lines for reasons that could not be determined based on available evidence. 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.