ERA13FA032

The failure of the pilot to maintain airspeed, while attempting a precautionary landing for reasons that could not be determined from the available evidence. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s pitch-up reaction to birds that took flight during his approach for the precautionary landing, which resulted in an inadvertent stall.

The airplane departed with an adequate supply of fuel in the main fuel tank but an unknown amount of fuel in the tip tanks. After the airplane took off, the mechanic who performed the last condition inspection and who was near the departure end of the runway noted an unusual sound; he said the sound was abnormal and expected the pilot to return, but he did not. The airplane’s GPS indicated that the flight proceeded south to the southern Long Island coastline then turned to the west, paralleling the coastline while climbing to a maximum altitude of 2,602 feet. The flight continued on the westerly heading along the southern coast of Long Island and descended to 2,383 feet and then turned north; the VHF transceiver was set to the Farmingdale automatic terminal information service. The flight continued on the northerly heading and descended to 1,812 feet, then turned to an easterly heading, followed by a southeasterly heading toward the southern coast of Long Island. The flight then turned back to an easterly heading with a steadily decreasing altitude and a steady groundspeed of about 86 knots. When just west of Moriches Inlet, the GPS altitude was noted to be 60 feet, and the groundspeed was 85 knots. Several witnesses located near the crash site heard a sputtering engine. One witness stated that the airplane was running flawlessly, but he thought it was going to land because it was flying “way too slow.” Another witness who was located about 1,000 to 1,500 feet west of the Moriches Inlet reported seeing a flock of birds take flight followed by the airplane pitching up and then pitching down into the inlet. Postaccident inspection of the airframe, flight controls, engine, and engine systems revealed no evidence of preimpact failure or malfunction. Although minimal damage was noted on the propeller, no evidence of a bird strike was noted on any component of the airplane. The flaps and landing gear were extended, consistent with a precautionary landing. During the postaccident examination, the left side of the engine exhaust, where it enters the muffler, was circumferentially fractured at a weld, and cracks were noted in a weld-repaired area of the left side exhaust system components; the fracture and cracks can be attributed to overload as a result of impact. There was no evidence of exhaust gas escaping the repaired area. Further, no carbon monoxide was detected in specimens of the pilot or passenger taken during the postmortem examinations. Although a crack to the left side exhaust system had been detected 9 days earlier and repaired at a non-aviation facility, it did not play a role in the accident. The fuel selector was found positioned to the tip tanks, both of which were breached during the impact sequence; therefore, no determination could be made as to the quantity of fuel in the tanks at the time of the accident. Although the remaining quantity of fuel in the main fuel tank was not quantified during the postaccident investigation, the airplane had only been operated for 40 minutes since the main fuel tank was filled; the main fuel tank can hold over 2 hours of fuel. No obstructions of the fuel supply from the main or tip tanks were noted, and the engine-driven fuel pump tested satisfactorily. Although about 6 ounces of water was drained from the main fuel tank, the water was consistent with ocean water; no other contaminants from the tank were noted. Water contamination was also noted from a sample of fuel and water drained from an open fuel supply line for the right tip tank; however, the right tip tank was breached and the water was likely from the ocean. No fuel or contamination was noted in the carburetor bowl. Although a valve on the left side of the firewall was inoperative, which allowed heated air to enter the cockpit by the pilot’s side, no determination could be made as to how or if that factored into the accident sequence. Further, that condition had been known by the pilot since September. Based on the flight track and groundspeed recorded by the GPS and the fact that the landing gear and flaps were extended, it is likely that the pilot was performing a precautionary landing. However, the reason for the attempted precautionary landing could not be determined from the available evidence. Based on the witness statement of birds in the area, it is likely that during the precautionary landing, the pilot reacted to the birds by pitching the airplane up, stalled the airplane, and was unable to recover because of the low altitude.

HISTORY OF FLIGHT On October 20, 2012, about 1504 eastern daylight time, a Swift Museum Foundation, Inc., GC-1A, N80823, owned by the pilot, impacted the water of Moriches Inlet, East Moriches, New York. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight from Spadaro Airport (1N2), East Moriches, New York, to Republic Airport (FRG), Farmingdale, New York. The airplane was substantially damaged and the private pilot and 1 passenger were fatally injured. The flight originated from 1N2 about 1455. The reported purpose of the flight was to return to FRG. An airframe and powerplant mechanic who signed off the last condition inspection was at the south end of 1N2 when the accident flight departed. He reported that what first caught his attention was the sound. The airplane at that time was past the departure end of the runway about 100 feet above ground level (agl), and he described hearing a noise from the engine he described as an “after noise.” He was asked if it was an after fire, and he advised it was not. He again referred to it as an “after noise”, which in all his years of experience he could not describe. Because of the noise which he perceived as abnormal, he expected the pilot to return but he did not. He did not observe any smoke trailing the airplane, which disappeared from his view. The witness was asked if he wears any hearing aide devices and he said he does, but at that time was not wearing them because they were in for repairs. According to data downloaded from the on-board GPS receiver, after takeoff the flight proceeded south to the southern coast of long Island while climbing to 1,473 feet, then turned to the west paralleling the coastline climbing to a maximum altitude of 2,602 feet at 1459:10. The airplane continued on the westerly heading along the southern coast of Long Island and descended to 2,383 feet where at 1500:47, a right turn to the north was made. The flight continued on the northerly heading and descended to 1,812 feet, and at 1501:37, the flight turned to an easterly heading, followed by a southeasterly heading towards the southerly coast of Long Island. The flight then turned to an easterly heading with decreasing altitude and steady groundspeed value of approximately 86 knots. When just west of Moriches Inlet, at 1504:14, the GPS altitude was noted to be 60 feet and the groundspeed was 85 knots, while 7 seconds later, the GPS altitude was noted to be 87 feet and the groundspeed was 75 knots. The final GPS target at 1504:22 indicates the GPS altitude was 89 feet and the groundspeed was 67 knots. The last target was located at 40 degrees 45.8736 minutes North latitude and 072 degrees 45.396 minutes west longitude. A witness driving eastbound on the beach approximately 200 yards west of the Moriches Inlet jetty reported the accident airplane flew over his vehicle about 30 feet agl. The witness heard a sputtering engine, and assumed that the airplane was in distress, and was going to land on the beach. He then lost sight of the airplane and assumed it had impacted the water in the inlet. He proceeded to the area and observed boaters secured the airplane with anchor lines. The comment about the sputtering engine was echoed by another witness located on the west jetty of Moriches Inlet. One individual who was on the beach located 1,000 to 1,500 feet west of the Moriches Inlet reported seeing the airplane flying low in an easterly direction. The witness reported the airplane appeared to spook a flock of birds which became airborne, and then observed the airplane pitch up, followed by the nose pitching down; the airplane crashed into the water of the Moriches Inlet. According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector-in-charge, the accident pilot did not establish contact with any FAA air traffic control facility at any time during the flight, and there was no radar data available for the accident flight. PERSONNEL INFORMATION The pilot, age 51, seated in the left seat, was the holder of a private pilot certificate with airplane single engine land rating. He was issued a third class medical certificate with no limitations on September 7, 2011. On the application for his last medical certificate he listed 480 hours as his total flight time, and 20 hours in last six months. There was no record of enforcement action, and he did not hold a repairman certificate. Review of the aircraft insurance application dated August 21, 2012, with an effective date of August 25, 2012, indicates the pilot listed his total time to be 500 hours, and 15 hours were in a tailwheel equipped airplanes in the last 90 days. The application also indicates his last flight review was in July 2012. The passenger, age 72, seated in the right seat, was last issued a student pilot medical certificate on August 16, 2006. On the application for his last medical certificate he listed a total time of 300 hours. There was no record that he obtained any further pilot certificates. AIRCRAFT INFORMATION The airplane was manufactured in 1946 by Globe Aircraft Corporation, Fort Worth, Texas, as model GC-1, and was designated serial number 226. It was certificated in the normal category in accordance with Civil Air Regulation (CAR) 4A, and originally equipped with a 85 horsepower Continental C85-12 engine and a fixed pitch propeller. An application was requested by Palomar Aviation, Inc., to place the airplane in the experimental category for the purpose of conducting flight tests on various modifications including installation of a 180 horsepower Lycoming O-360-A1A engine, leading edge change, rudder size change, and tip tank installation. The FAA Engineering & Manufacturing District Office (WE-41) approved the request on May 2, 1963, and issued operating limitations that expired November 2, 1963. The airplane remained in the Experimental Category by application every year until October 1979, at which time it remained in the experimental category with no expiration date. The fuel system consisted of two tanks in the wing center section each located inboard of the wing outer panel attach point and also between the forward and aft spars, and two fiberglass fuel tanks installed at each wingtip, selectable by the fuel selector, and plumbed to the engine compartment. The two tanks installed in the wing center section are considered the main tank; the total capacity of the main tank is listed to be 27.8 gallons. While the capacity of each fiberglass tip tank was not determined by paperwork, the fuel selector indicated “176” for the left and right tip tanks respectively. The engine was equipped with an exhaust system that is similar in design to that for a Mooney M20A or M20B airplane equipped with a Lycoming O-360 engine; however, it was modified. Paperwork provided to FAA and NTSB indicates that the pilot purchased the airplane from the previous owner in December 2011. There was no record with the FAA that a registration application and bill of sale for his purchase were submitted to the agency. The pilot picked up the airplane on August 25, 2012, at Waterbury-Oxford Airport (OXC), Waterbury, Connecticut. The mechanic who performed the last condition inspection reported he did not perform a pre-buy inspection of the airplane for the pilot. Since purchase, the pilot based the airplane at the Republic Airport (FRG), located in Farmingdale, New York. Heated air for the cockpit and cabin is provided by a shroud assembly which covers an exhaust manifold on the bottom forward portion of the engine. A scat hose connects to a duct on the shroud assembly and also to a valve located on the lower left portion of the firewall. A Bowden wire connected to a control knob on the co-pilot’s side of the instrument panel controls the valve which has a moveable flap on the engine compartment side of the valve and also a second fl