LAX98FA043

The tower was tracking radar returns believed to be from the accident aircraft. The track continued north to a point west of the coastline. The altitude returns indicated 3,000 feet, a descent to 1,500 feet, then back to 1,800 feet before radar contact was lost. A lifeguard reported seeing an aircraft complete a loop, level off, and then nose over in a dive until the crashing into the ocean. The pilot's girlfriend contacted the operator asking if the pilot had taken off and expressed concern about a possible attempted suicide. The operator contacted the tower, but the aircraft had already departed. A friend of the pilot reported that he had been despondent recently about the death of his mother and his deteriorating health. The pilot left a hand written will dated the day before the accident. The coroner reported finding evidence of advanced coronary artery disease and a previous heart attack. He ruled the death as suicide.

History of flight

On November 24, 1997, at 1352 hours Pacific standard time, a Cessna 172N, N6463D, crashed into the Pacific ocean while maneuvering approximately 1 mile northwest of the La Jolla, California, coastline. The aircraft was destroyed and the pilot, the sole occupant, received fatal injuries. The aircraft was being operated as a personal flight by Flyers, Inc. when the accident occurred. The flight originated from Montgomery Field about 1330. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and no flight plan was filed.

The Montgomery Field air traffic control tower (ATCT) operator confirmed that he was tracking a series of VFR, altitude encoding, 1200 returns. He believed, but could not confirm, that they were emanating from the accident aircraft. He described the returns as forming a track that continued on a westerly direction from the airport toward Mt. Soledad. The track circled Mt. Soledad once and then went on north to a point about 1 mile west of the coastline. At that point the returns indicated an altitude of 3,000 feet msl, then showed a descent to 1,500 feet, and finally back up to 1,800 feet before radar contact was lost.

At the time of the accident a lifeguard near the accident site reported seeing a southbound single engine aircraft. The aircraft completed a loop, leveled off for several seconds, and then nosed over in a steep dive until the aircraft crashed into the ocean.

A female caller, reportedly the pilot's girlfriend, contacted the operator asking if the pilot had taken off, and expressed concern about a possible attempted suicide. The operator, in turn, contacted the Montgomery ATCT, but the aircraft had already departed. A friend of the pilot reported that he had been despondent recently about the death of his mother and his deteriorating health.

Personnel information

The pilot's logbook was not recovered. Neither recent flight experience nor a current biennial flight review was established.

A hand written will was found, allegedly signed by the pilot on November 23, 1997, bequeathing his 1998 Mitsubishi Eclipse automobile to his girlfriend.

Aircraft information

The operator reported that the aircraft departed with full fuel.

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airworthiness inspectors reviewed the aircraft and engine logbooks. The entries reflected the compliance with applicable airworthiness requirements.

The aircraft is not designed or certified for aerobatic maneuvers.

Wreckage and impact information

On December 3, 1997, divers in about 190 feet of water located the aircraft and the pilot. The location was 32 degrees 53.115 minutes north latitude by 117 degrees 16.543 minutes west longitude. This location was about 0.25 miles from the point where radar contact had been lost with the VFR 1200 code beacon return. The aircraft came to rest under water and search and rescue personnel reported no emergency locator transmitter signal.

The aircraft wreckage was partially recovered. The wings, the right horizontal stabilizer, and portions of the fuselage were not found. The elevator trim and flap positions were not determined. Control cable continuity from the cockpit to the flight control surfaces could not be verified.

The throttle, mixture, and carburetor heat controls were in the full forward position; however, the quadrant showed evidence of impact damage. According to aircraft recovery personnel who observed the water retrieval, the pilot was retained by his seatbelt and shoulder harness.

The propeller was missing from the crankshaft flange. Mechanical continuity was established, in the rotating components of the engine, by hand rotation of the crankshaft. The push rods and tubes for the No. 1 and 3 cylinders were missing. The No. 2 and 4 cylinder push rods exhibited bending. The oil pan was missing.

An examination of the oil filter revealed the presence of water and residual oil; however, there was no evidence of metallic particles. The engine fuel filter was safety wired and contained no evidence of particulate contamination. The fuel selector was in the both position.

Mechanical continuity was established for the magnetos. The top spark plugs exhibited wear patterns that were consistent with normal wear as illustrated by the Champion Check-a-Plug Chart.

Medical and pathological information

An autopsy was conducted by the San Diego County Coroner's office on December 4, 1997, with specimens retained for toxicological examination by the FAA Civil Aero Medical Institute (CAMI).

The coroner reported finding evidence of advanced coronary artery disease and a previous coronary infarction. He also ruled the mode of death as suicide.

The results of the toxicological tests were negative for all screened drug substances. The test was positive for ethanol. The CAMI manager, however, attributed the presence of ethanol to be the result of postmortem production.

A friend reported that that the pilot was concerned that his health was deteriorating and that, as a result, he would lose his FAA medical certificate.

Survival aspects

The aircraft was not located until 8 days after the accident.

Additional information

The aircraft wreckage was released to a representative of the registered owner on June 25, 1998.