- Date
- April 19, 2002, 18:04 local (23:04 UTC)
- Place
- Troy, AL
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N912SLett R/Campbell K Aircam
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 20, 2002
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20020419006199A
- Case key
- 54560
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
the pilot-in-commands decision to fly at a low altitude and his improper visual lookout resulting in an in-flight collision static with wires.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The airplane had been flying around the area low level for about 30 minutes, when it struck power lines, about 70 feet above a lake, then fell into the water. The crash site was located about 2 to 3 miles southeast of the airport. The airplane was only partly submerged with the nose on the bottom of the lake. A witness jumped into the lake and rescued the pilot from the submerged wreckage. There were no reports of any mechanical problems before the airplane struck the power lines. There were no reported obstructions due to weather, and the reported visibility about the time of the accident was 10 statute miles.
Factual narrative
On April 19, 2002, about 1804 central daylight time, a Lett R/Campbell K. AIRCAM homebuilt airplane, N912S, registered to Pike Aviation Inc., and operated by an individual, struck power lines, and impacted in a lake while maneuvering near Troy, Alabama. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time. No flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight. The airplane was destroyed. The airline transport-rated pilot reported serious injuries. The flight had departed from the Troy Airport, about 1715.
The pilot stated in a letter that, "I have no recollection of the accident nor any other incidents which occurred on 4/19/02." According to witnesses, the airplane had been flying around the area low level for about 45 minutes, when it struck power lines, about 70 feet above a lake, and then fell into the water. The crash site was located about 2 to 3 miles southeast of the Troy Airport. According to witnesses at the scene the airplane was found lying inverted at the east end of the lake, in about 6 to 8 feet of water. The airplane was only partly submerged with the nose on the bottom of the lake. A witness jumped into the lake and rescued the pilot from the submerged wreckage. There were no reports of any mechanical problems before the airplane struck the power lines. There were no reported obstructions due to weather, and the reported visibility about the time of the accident was 10 statute miles.
Toxicological tests were conducted on specimens obtained from the pilot during admission to the hospital by the Federal Aviation Administration, Research Laboratory, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The tests were negative for Ethanol in Serum, and positive for Lidocaine in Serum.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N912S
- Reported as
- Lett R/Campbell K Aircam
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 013
- Airframe hours
- 207
- Engine
- Rotax 9125, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Jackie E. Roush
- Registered owner
- Pike Aviation Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Condition · December 10, 2001 · 11 hours before
- Departed
- TOI · Troy, AL
- Airport
- TOI · Troy Municipal, runway 32, 5,000 × 100 ft, asphalt
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 60
- Injuries
- Serious
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Last flight review
- November 30, 2001
- Seat
- Front
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 5,500 total · 2 in this make and model · 3,850 as pilot in command · 120 in the last 90 days · 40 in the last 30 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 240° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 11,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 86 °F, dew point 64 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.06 inHg
- Observed at
- TOI, 3 nm away
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 5, 2002, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 443 KB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.