# NTSB LAX02LA085: Ellenberger/Werner Glasair I TD, N777WE, Minden, NV, February 13, 2002 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Fatal · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: February 12, 2002, 16:30 local (Feb 13, 2002, 00:30 UTC) - Place: Minden, NV - Coordinates: 39.010284, -119.749412 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.0103&lon=-119.7494&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Maneuvering](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/450) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: Fatal - Injuries: 2 fatal - Status: Completed, report August 26, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 54195 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX02LA085 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/54195/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=54195 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA085 ## Probable cause the pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane resulting in the airplane entering a flat spin from which the pilot did not recover. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - in flight, maneuvering - aircraft control - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - use of inappropriate medication/drug, pilot in command - stall/spin - not corrected, pilot in command (cause) - In flight collision with terrain/water, descent - uncontrolled ## Analysis The amateur-built airplane impacted the ground in a pasture at a steep flight path angle. Prior to departure the pilot told the operator that his intent was to practice stall maneuvers. When he did not return that evening, an Alert Notice (ALNOT) was issued. The owner of the property where the accident occurred saw an unidentified object in his pasture the following morning, however he had other pressing business and didn't return to identify the wreckage until the afternoon of that day. The accident site was in an open pasture, and the entire airplane was present in the immediate area of the wreckage with no appreciable wreckage distribution. There was no fire. The forward 1/2 of the engine was buried in the soil at a 30- to 45-degree angle. The composite airframe was extensively fractured; however, flight control continuity was established to the cockpit. The left and right wing leading edges exhibited crushing damage aft to the wing spar and there was an impact mark on the surface of the dirt immediately in front of the wing of size and shape consistent with the leading edge shape and span. There were no trees or electrical power transmission lines in the proximity. A toxicological analysis of the pilot reported finding the drug paroxetine. According to the internet website "mentalhealth.com", paroxetine is a prescription antidepressant. The concentration reported in the pilot's blood was 0.279 ug/mL. The FAA's 1999 Guide for Aviation Medical Examiners notes "the use of a psychotropic drug is considered disqualifying. This includes all sedatives, tranquilizers, antipsychotic drugs, antidepressant drugs (including SSRI's), analeptics, anxiolytics, and hallucinogens." ## Factual narrative On February 12, 2002, about 1630 Pacific standard time, an experimental Ellenberger Glasair I TD, N777WE, impacted terrain in a pasture 6 miles south of Minden, Nevada. The certificated private pilot and one passenger were fatally injured and the amateur-built airplane was destroyed. The local area personal flight was operated by Mansberger Aircraft, Inc., under 14 CFR Part 91, and departed from the Minden-Tahoe airport about 1600. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. According to the operator, the pilot departed Minden about 1600 and told him his intent was to practice stalls. When he did not return that evening an Alert Notice (ALNOT) was issued. The owner of the property where the accident occurred saw an unidentified object in his pasture the following morning (February 13, 2002); however, he had other pressing business and didn't return to identify the wreckage until the afternoon of that day. An inspector from the Federal Aviation Administration responded to the scene. He reported the accident site was in an open pasture, and that the entire airplane was present in the immediate area of the wreckage with no appreciable wreckage distribution. There was no fire. The forward 1/2 of the engine was buried in the soil at a 30- to 45-degree angle. The composite airframe was extensively fractured; however, flight control continuity was established to the cockpit. The left and right wing leading edges exhibited crushing damage aft to the wing spar and there was an impact mark on the surface of the dirt immediately in front of the wing of size and shape consistent with the leading edge shape and span. There were no trees in the immediate area and those in the distance showed no visible evidence of impact. There were no electrical power transmission lines in the proximity. A toxicological analysis of the pilot was performed by the FAA's Civil Aeromedical Institute and their report shows the presence of the drug paroxetine. According to the internet website "mentalhealth.com", paroxetine is a prescription antidepressant. The concentration reported in the pilot's blood was 0.279 ug/mL. The FAA's 1999 Guide for Aviation Medical Examiners notes "the use of a psychotropic drug is considered disqualifying. This includes all sedatives, tranquilizers, antipsychotic drugs, antidepressant drugs (including SSRI's), analeptics, anxiolytics, and hallucinogens." On the pilot's last application for an Airman Medical Certificate on June 4, 1998, he reported that he had accumulated 320 hours total pilot time, and 45 hours within the last six months. The airplane owner, who was also the pilot's employer, told the Safety Board investigator that he recalled the pilot was in an unusually "aggressive mood" on the day of the accident. The pilot was normally a quiet person and on that day he was more aggressive with others, but not in an unacceptable way. He had recently broken up with his girlfriend. This had happened several times before but this time he seemed "OK" with it. He even joked about it a little. The pilot's brother told the Safety Board investigator that he was aware his brother had a prescription for paroxetine but that his brother had no serious emotional issues. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N777WE](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N777WE-2002-07-26), registration cancelled 2002-07-26, S/N 101, built 1990 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Ellenberger/Werner Glasair I TD - Registry model: [Ellenberger Werner GLASAIR I TD](https://openairdocs.org/model/ellenberger-werner-glasair-i-td) (registry code 05691CF) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-320 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (registry code 41508, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane, amateur-built - Serial number: 101 - Airframe hours: 231 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-E2A 150 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Destroyed - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Mansberger Aircraft Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special) - Last inspection: Condition, November 6, 2001, 15 hours before - Departed: MEV, Minden, NV ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 37; injuries: fatal; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, without waivers/limitations; toxicology performed; flight hours: 320 total ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 90° at 10 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 25,000 ft broken - Temperature: 52 °F, dew point 10 °F - Altimeter: 30.20 inHg - Observed at: RNO, 36 nm away ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20020212001489A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020212001489A), Feb 12, 2002: Amtr GLASAIR, Minden, NV, No damage, 2 fatal. (.19) On February 12, 2002, about 1630 pacific standard time, an experimental ellenberger Glasair I td, N777WE, impacted terrain in a pasture 6 miles south of… ## Docket (17 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 20, 2003, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=54195. 3.5 MB in all. - Record of Telephone Conversation 2/14/02 (item 1, .PDF, 37 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40390108&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Record%20of%20Telephone%20Conversation%202%2F14%2F02-Redacted.PDF - Record of Telephone Conversation 5/20/02 (item 2, .PDF, 35 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40390109&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Record%20of%20Telephone%20Conversation%205%2F20%2F02-Redacted.PDF - Airworthiness Certificate and Aircraft Registration (item 3, .PDF, 105 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40390110&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Airworthiness%20Certificate%20and%20Aircraft%20Registration-Redacted.PDF - Letter from Mansberger Aircraft (item 4, .PDF, 40 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40390111&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Letter%20from%20Mansberger%20Aircraft-Redacted.PDF - Aircraft Operations Limitations (item 5, .PDF, 171 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40390112&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Aircraft%20Operations%20Limitations-Redacted.PDF - Weight and Balance Information. (item 6, .PDF, 236 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40165122&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Weight%20and%20Balance%20Information.-Master.PDF - Excerpts from Aircraft Logbook (item 7, .PDF, 514 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40390113&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Excerpts%20from%20Aircraft%20Logbook-Redacted.PDF - Toxicological Report (item 8, .PDF, 79 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40390114&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Toxicological%20Report-Redacted.PDF - Photo 1. (item 9, .PDF, 252 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40165125&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%201.-Master.PDF - Photo 2. (item 10, .PDF, 231 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40165126&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%202.-Master.PDF - Photo 3. (item 11, .PDF, 252 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40165127&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%203.-Master.PDF - Photo 4. (item 12, .PDF, 296 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40165128&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%204.-Master.PDF - Photo 5. (item 13, .PDF, 303 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40165129&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%205.-Master.PDF - Photo 6. (item 14, .PDF, 250 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40165130&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%206.-Master.PDF - Photo 7. (item 15, .PDF, 247 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40165131&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%207.-Master.PDF - Photo 8. (item 16, .PDF, 240 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40165132&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%208.-Master.PDF - Photo 9. (item 17, .PDF, 261 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40165133&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%209.-Master.PDF 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. --- 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.