ERA23FA060

The student pilot purchased the experimental amateur-built, tailwheel-equipped airplane on the morning of the accident. Witnesses reported seeing the accident airplane taxi up and down the runway several times, followed by a takeoff attempt at full engine power. During the takeoff roll, the airplane never became airborne and instead veered left, departed the runway, and impacted a tree. Examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of preimpact mechanical anomalies that would have prevented normal operation. The seller of the airplane stated that he owned the airplane about 2 years and had accrued only 3 hours of flight time in it. He stated that the airplane’s flight controls were “very sensitive.” The seller reported that he asked the accident pilot if he had any flight hours in a tailwheel airplane, and the pilot reported that he had “a few.” The student pilot reported 70 total hours of flight experience on his most recent medical certificate application over 4 years before the accident. His pilot logbook was not located, and no determination could be made about any recent flight experience, tailwheel experience, or experience in the accident airplane make and model. The circumstances of the accident are consistent with the pilot’s loss of control during takeoff. Although toxicological testing revealed an over-the-counter sedating antihistamine, it is not likely that his use of this medication contributed to the accident.

HISTORY OF FLIGHT On November 15, 2022, at 1530 eastern daylight time, an experimental amateur-built DA-2 airplane, N4307Q, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Oak Hill, Florida. The student pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. A witness, who was the seller of the accident airplane, stated that he purchased the airplane 2 years before, and that he had accrued only about 3 hours of flight experience in the airplane. He further stated that the airplane’s flight controls were “very sensitive.” He sold the airplane to the accident pilot on the morning of the accident. He said he asked the pilot if he had any tailwheel flight experience, and the pilot stated that he had “a few in a Champ.” The seller told the pilot that he should taxi the airplane up and down the runway a couple times to get familiar with it before he departed for his home airport. He heard the pilot taxiing, and then he heard the airplane’s engine advance to full power. Shortly thereafter, he heard the sound of impact. He did not witness the accident. Other witnesses who lived near the airport, reported seeing the accident airplane taxi up and down the runway several times, followed by a takeoff attempt at full engine power; the airplane never became airborne and instead veered left, departed the runway, and impacted a tree. PERSONNEL INFORMATION The pilot, age 74, held a student pilot certificate, and reported 70 total hours of flight experience on his last Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) medical certificate application, dated April 2018. The student pilot applied for BasicMed in January 2022. The pilot’s logbook was not recovered, and his recent or total flight experience could not be determined, nor could it be determined whether he had any experience in the accident airplane make and model. WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION The accident site was located 150 ft to the left side of runway 17 (midfield), at Blue Ridge Flightpark (34FD), Oak Hill, Florida. Skid marks about 150 yards in length were consistent with the witness descriptions that the airplane veered left during the takeoff. The skid marks, left in the soil by the tail wheel, were outside and to the right of the impressions made by both main landing gear tires. The airplane impacted a tree with the right wing, where the wing attached to the fuselage. Both wings were separated from the fuselage and were lying beside it. The right wing was crushed by the tree. The empennage remained intact. Flight control continuity was established to all primary flight controls. The canopy was fractured into several pieces. The engine, propeller, fuel tank, instrument panel, and throttle quadrant separated from the fuselage and rolled about 10 ft away from the main wreckage. The fuel tank was breached and only a small amount of fuel remained in the tank. The throttle and mixture controls moved smoothly. There were treeimpression marks and tree bark on the No. 3 cylinder, but no other damage noted on the engine. The propeller was made of wood and one blade fractured off near the hub. The spinner dome was unremarkable. MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION Toxicology testing performed by the FAA’s Forensic Sciences Laboratory identified meclizine in the pilot’s blood and urine. Meclizine’s metabolite, norchlorcyclizine, was detected in blood and urine. Meclizine is an antihistamine available over-the-counter to prevent symptoms of motion sickness such as nausea, vomiting, and dizziness or by prescription to treat vertigo associated with diseases affecting the vestibular system. Norchlorcyclizine is a metabolite of meclizine. Meclizine can cause drowsiness and may impair the mental or physical ability to perform potentially hazardous tasks such as driving or operating heavy machinery. The FAA does not allow the use of this medication chronically or within 36 hours of flying.