ERA15FA181

A rapid onset of smoke and/or fire inflight for reasons that could not be determined due to the postimpact fire and the condition of the wreckage.

Following an uneventful personal flight, the pilot contacted the air traffic control tower controller and was immediately cleared to land. About 36 seconds later, the pilot reported "smoke in the cockpit." When asked to repeat, the pilot repeated "smoke in the cockpit." The tower controller cleared the pilot to land on any runway. About 47 seconds after the initial call of smoke, the pilot reported "mayday mayday mayday mayday mayday (unintelligible)." The airplane then crashed about ¼ mile short of the airport in a wooded area and burned. Security video showed the airplane pitch nose-down suddenly just before impact. The video revealed no visible smoke or fire trailing the airplane before ground impact. The pilot reported about 1,221 hours of total flight time on his Federal Aviation Administration first class medical certificate, issued about two months prior to the accident. He completed an initial training course for the airplane make and model 1 week before the accident. The airplane had recently undergone an annual inspection and extensive upgrades to its avionics. Both the left and right engines displayed contact signatures to their internal components characteristic of engines developing significant power at the time of impact, likely in the mid-to-high power range. The engines displayed no indications of any pre-impact anomalies or distress that would have precluded normal engine operation. Both propeller assemblies broke free from the engine during the crash sequence and the blades on both engines revealed signatures consistent with the development of power at impact. The center fuselage and cockpit areas were completely consumed in the postcrash fire. An examination of all remaining wires, wire bundles, switches, terminals, circuit breakers, electrical components, instruments, and avionics did not reveal evidence of precrash thermal distress. However, a small fire just before impact likely would not have had time to create thermal damage that would be discernable after an extensive postcrash fire.

A postmortem examination of the pilot was performed at the offices of the Broward County Medical Examiner, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.. The autopsy report noted the cause of death as "blunt force trauma of the chest" and the manner of death was "accident." Forensic toxicology testing of the pilot was performed on specimens of the pilot by the FAA Bioaeronautical Sciences Research Laboratory (CAMI), Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The CAMI toxicology report indicated negative for carbon monoxide (a 10 percent cutoff), ethanol, and drugs. Testing for cyanide was not performed. Local toxicology testing indicated 4 percent carbon monoxide in the blood. The autopsy report noted that there was "minimal soot" in the upper airway. All three passengers, who were the pilot's wife and two daughters, died from inhalation of products of combustion and thermal injuries. All three passengers had elevated carbon monoxide in the blood, with levels of 17, 20, and 72 percent, respectively. The upper airway of all three passengers contained soot. The wreckage was located inside a fenced nature preserve within the boundary of the airport. The main wreckage was located directly under the extended centerline for runway 13. The wreckage debris field was about 167 feet in length and about 50 feet wide, oriented on a heading of about 112 degrees. The fuselage came to rest upright, aligned on a heading of 020 degrees. All major structural components of the aircraft were found within the confines of the debris field. Several tree limbs were found along the wreckage path with smooth, angular cuts. The fuselage was destroyed from the nose cone area aft to the forward pressure bulkhead from impact damage and the postcrash fire. All structure forward of the main wing spar was consumed by the postcrash fire. The aft fuselage, forward of the main cabin door leading edge, was segmented and destroyed by the postcrash fire. The fuselage wreckage surrounding the aft cabin door frame was impact-damaged and scorched. The main cabin door was found latched. The cabin enclosure windows and windshields were destroyed by ground impact and postcrash fire. The forward cabin seats were in place; however, they were bent and destroyed by impact forces and postcrash fire. The aft seats were found bent with fire damage noted. All seat restraints were damaged by postcrash fire. Two buckled remnants were located, and other seat restraint items were found; however, the seat belt webbing was burned away. The remaining buckles were not latched and were noted to be damaged from postcrash fire. All avionics equipment and flight instruments were destroyed by the postcrash fire. The magnetic compass unit was located in the forward debris path. The switch and circuit breaker panels were fire-damaged. The engine power levers appeared to be in the "full forward" positions. The left and right control wheel shafts were noted to be bent from impact. The control wheels were destroyed by the postcrash fire. The aileron control chain was attached to the control wheel shaft sprockets. The rudder pedals were located. Their support shaft was impact-damaged and the pedals were not free to move. The nose landing gear was found adjacent to the fuselage. It appeared to have been in the "extended and locked" position. The airplane's radar unit antenna was located adjacent to the fuselage, and its power supply and processor were located in nearby brush. The airplane's main battery was not located. The cabin heater was located, installed at its normal position. The flap and landing gear select switches were damaged from impact and postcrash fire. They offered no useful information as to their pre-impact positions. The flight control trim wheel console was destroyed by ground impact and postcrash fire. Their cables were intact and could be traced aft to their respective flight controls. Both engines were separated from the airframe and both propeller assemblies were separated from the engines during the accident sequence. The vertical fin remained mounted to the fuselage. It exhibited impact damage and some scorching signatures. The rudder was attached to the vertical fin and was free to move left and right. It appeared to have limited impact damage. The rudder trim tab and actuator rod were still attached and both were free to move. Rudder and rudder trim cable continuity were traced from their respective positions forward to the cabin area. Continuity was noted but control movement was limited due to cabin area compression and distortion. The primary rudder control stops indicated no bending or peening conditions. The autopilot servo bridal cable was intact. The horizontal stabilizer assembly was noted to have tree and ground impact damage with some scorching noted. The left horizontal stabilizer was bent downward and appeared to have a "U" shape. Leading edge damage was noted to both sides. The elevator was free to move. The control rod was attached and the control balance springs were in place. The autopilot pitch servo bridal cables were attached. The trim tab was free to move. Cable continuity was traced forward to the cabin area. Movement was limited due to cabin area compression and distortion. The elevator primary stops showed no evidence of a bending or peening condition. The left wing inboard section was separated from the fuselage at the wing root and was destroyed by impact forces and the postcrash fire. The outboard section, engine nacelle, and wing tip tank areas were separated by tree impact and were found in the vicinity of the initial tree impact point. No fire damage was noted on the surfaces. The left flap was destroyed by ground impact and postcrash fire. It appeared to have been in the extended position. The left aileron was segmented and destroyed. Aileron control cable continuity was traced to the forward cabin area thru separations made by ground impact tension overload and retrieval personnel making cuts to facilitate wing wreckage retrieval. Control movement was limited due to postcrash fire and impact damage at the fuselage. All fuel tanks were breached and all fuel caps were in place and closed. The main landing gear was noted to be in the extended position and separated from the wing. The right wing was partially attached to the fuselage at the main spar. The engine nacelle inboard wing section was partially attached. It exhibited severe ground impact and postcrash fire damage. All fuel bladder tanks were breached and destroyed. The fuel caps were in place and locked. The tip tank was separated and located within the debris field. The main landing gear was attached to the wing and appeared to be in the extended position. It exhibited heat and impact damage. The inboard flap section was partially destroyed and segmented from the outboard section, which was attached to the wing panel. The aileron was attached at its hinges. The trim tab, control rod, and balance weight were still attached. The outboard wing section exhibited separation at the rivet line with aft crushing signatures evident. Aileron control cable continuity was established thru tension overload cable breaks and through-cuts made by the wreckage retrieval personnel. The autopilot roll servo bridal cables appeared to be damaged by postcrash fire damage and fuselage distortion. The flap appeared to be in the down position. Following the on-scene documentation, the wreckage was moved to a storage facility at Fort Pierce, Florida for additional examination. All avionics units were removed and examined. All units were heavily damaged by fire, and there were no indications of pre-crash thermal damage or arcing. All aircraft wiring harnesses were removed and examined. All wires were heavily damaged by fire with the insulation burned away. There were no visible indications of pre-crash thermal damage or arcing noted. All switches, connections, and terminals were burned, and some were intact; no arcing damage was not