DEN05LA059

The two airplanes departed on a sightseeing flight. On the return trip, the pilot in the second airplane contacted the non-certificated pilot of the accident airplane and stated that he needed to land and refuel. After landing on a dirt road, the pilot received a radio call from the non-certificated pilot who stated that the road was too short to land and that he had enough fuel and would continue on to the home airport. The pilot stated that the accident airplane circled a few times, and then the sound of it disappeared. The pilot finished refueling his airplane and departed to return to the home airport. On his return, the pilot was unable to locate the non-certificated pilot. The pilot decided to drive back to the area where he landed and refueled. The pilot found the accident airplane nose down and substantially damaged in a dry riverbed approximately 1 nautical mile west of the road he had landed on earlier. An examination of the airplane revealed no anomalies. Flight data extracted from a handheld GPS receiver that was in the accident airplane showed that in the last 48 seconds of flight, the airplane made a steep right turn and rapidly descended to the ground.

On February 26, 2005, at approximately 1042 mountain standard time, a Bourgeois-Avid Flyer MK IV experimental homebuilt airplane, N94B, operated by a non-certificated pilot, was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain while maneuvering approximately 5 nautical miles south of Kaycee, Wyoming. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The personal flight was being conducted under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 without a flight plan. The pilot was fatally injured. The flight originated at Casper, Wyoming at approximately 0715.

According to a pilot in a second airplane, the two airplanes departed Casper on a sightseeing flight to Midwest, and Kaycee, Wyoming. Prior to returning to Casper, the pilot contacted the non-certificated pilot in the Avid Flyer and stated that he needed to land and refuel. After landing on a dirt road, the pilot received a radio call from the non-certificated pilot who stated that the road was too short to land and that he had enough fuel and would continue on to Casper. The pilot stated that the Avid Flyer circled a few times, and then the sound of it disappeared. The pilot finished refueling his airplane and departed to return to Casper.

During his return flight to Casper, the pilot was unable to establish radio contact with the Avid Flyer. At Casper, the pilot was unable to find the Avid Flyer, and decided to drive back to Kaycee. At approximately 1330, he found the Avid Flyer in a dry riverbed approximately 1 nautical mile west of the dirt road where he had landed to refuel.

A field examination showed the airplane had impacted the western edge of a dry riverbed in a 56-degree nose-down angle. The front of the airplane, from the spinner, aft through the cowling, and instrument panel was crushed aft to the cabin. The front windscreen Plexiglas was broken out and fragmented. The right main landing gear was bent aft. The left main gear was intact. The airplane's right wing was bent upward and aft, and crushed and torn aft along the span of the leading edge. The left wing was bent forward and down at the wing root. The left wing tip was crushed aft. The fuselage was bent, buckled, and twisted clockwise. The empennage was twisted counterclockwise and bent upward. The vertical and horizontal stabilizers, the elevator, and the rudder were intact. The elevator was deflected upward. The rudder was deflected full right to the stop.

An examination of the instrument panel showed the airplane's altimeter read 3,920 feet. The Kollsman window showed an altimeter setting of 29.66 inches. The tachometer needle showed 3,000 revolutions per minute.

The wooden propeller blades were broken aft near the hub. The front face of one blade showed chordwise scrapes and scratches. The smell of fuel was prevalent. An examination of the engine showed no anomalies. A handheld global positioning system (GPS) receiver unit was recovered from the airplane and retained for further examination.

Raw data taken from the handheld GPS receiver unit indicated that during the last 48 seconds of the flight, the airplane's heading changed from 308 degrees true, to 335 degrees, to 027 degrees, to 056 degrees, and 123 degrees, before ending. The last 48 seconds showed the airplane predominantly over the same geographical coordinates, 43 degrees, 39.910 minutes north latitude, and 106 degrees, 42.346 minutes west longitude. During this time period, the airplane's recorded altitude went from a peak height of 5,059 feet mean sea level to a final recorded altitude of 4,977 feet. The elevation at the accident site was approximately 4, 750 feet. The geographical coordinates of the accident site was 43 degrees, 39.533 minutes north latitude, and 106 degrees, 42.206 minutes west longitude.