N209HPiper PA-11 · 1948

On June 16, 2019, about 1145 Pacific daylight time, a Piper PA-11 airplane, N209H, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Copperopolis, California. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 personal flight.

A friend of the pilot reported that, earlier in the morning of the day of the accident, the pilot had sent him a text message, which said that he was going to do a “fly by” over the lake. The friend told the pilot to let him know when he was 5 or 10 minutes out. The friend stated that, when he saw the airplane, it was about 150 ft above the water and that the pilot did a “wing wag.”

Several witnesses located on or near Lake Tulloch at the time of the accident reported seeing the airplane flying at a low altitude heading south over the lake and then strike power lines. Subsequently, the airplane descended nose down into the water. One witness took a series of photos that showed the airplane over the lake. (See figure 1 for a compilation of three of the photographs showing the airplane nearing the power poles.)

Local law enforcement located the airplane, which was submerged in about 110 ft of water near the power lines and recovered it 2 days after the accident.

Figure 1. A compilation of three photographs of the airplane as it neared the power poles (all photographs are courtesy of the witness).

Representatives from the utility company that owned the power lines reported that, 16 days after the accident, a survey crew measured the heights of the lowest and highest power lines, which were 72.9 and 83.9 ft above the water, respectively.

Figure 2. A photograph showing the accident site shortly after the collision.

Examination of the wreckage revealed that the fuselage structure was separated from the upper cockpit structure. Both the left and right wings remained attached to the upper structure and surrounding fuselage structure. Recovery personnel cut off the empennage just forward of the vertical stabilizer.

Flight control continuity was established from the cockpit controls to all flight controls.

The right wing was intact. The aileron remained attached to the wing. The wing’s leading edge was compressed aft throughout the entire wingspan. The lift struts remained attached to the wing. About midspan, the leading edge of the right lift strut exhibited a small series of striations, consistent with a braided wire.

The left wing’s leading edge was compressed aft throughout the entire wingspan. About 10 ft outboard of the forward spar attachment point, the wing’s leading edge exhibited striations that extended outboard about 12 inches and were consistent with a braided wire cable. About 16 inches of leading-edge structure outboard of the landing light cutout exhibited a circular impression and striations consistent with a braided wire. (See figure 3, which is a photograph showing the braided striations on the left wing.) Additionally, the wing spar was bent aft in a larger circular impression behind the leading-edge structure.

Figure 3. A photograph of the braided wire striations on the left wing.

Examination of the recovered engine and airframe revealed no evidence of any preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.

The FAA's Forensic Sciences Laboratory performed toxicology testing on specimens from the pilot. The tests detected 0.051 grams per deciliter (gm/dL) of ethanol in the femoral blood, 0.046 gm/dL of ethanol in vitreous fluid, and 0.072 gm/dL of ethanol in urine.

Ethanol is a drug commonly consumed by drinking beer, wine, or liquor and acts as a central nervous system depressant. Ethanol significantly impairs pilots’ performance even at very low levels. Although the acute effects of ethanol can vary depending on an individual's frequency of use, body weight, and tolerance, in general, blood ethanol concentrations as low as 0.02 gm/dL can cause relaxation and degrade judgment, and a concentration of 0.05 gm/dL can further degrade judgment, psychomotor functioning, and alertness. Ethanol is water soluble, and after absorption, it quickly and uniformly distributes throughout the body’s tissues and fluids. Postabsorption, the ethanol concentration in vitreous fluid and urine are larger than in blood by about 12% and 25%, respectively. There is a 1- to 2-hour delay in the balance between vitreous fluid or urine and blood. Ethanol can be produced postmortem by microbial activity; however, vitreous fluid and urine are not subject to postmortem ethanol production.

Title 14 CFR Section 91.17 (a) states, in part, that

no person may act or attempt to act as a crewmember of a civil aircraft (1) Within 8 hours after the consumption of any alcoholic beverage; (2) While under the influence of alcohol; (3) While using any drug that affects the person's faculties in any way contrary to safety; or (4) while having an alcohol concentration of 0.040 gm/dL or greater in a blood or breath specimen.

The pilot’s wife reported that she was with her husband until about 0900 the day of the accident and that he did not consume any alcohol that morning because he “never would consume alcohol prior to flying.”