NTSB Factual Report

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 flap located on the interior of the valve. By design, with the cockpit and cabin heat knob in the closed position, the flap on the interior is vertical or parallel to the firewall while the flap on the engine compartment side of the valve is open preventing heated air from entering the cockpit and allowing it to escape into the engine compartment.

Ram or fresh air to the cockpit and cabin is provided by a scat hose that connects to a duct at the engine cowling and also to a valve located on the lower center portion of the instrument panel. 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 flap located on the interior of the valve. By design, with the cockpit and cabin fresh air knob in the open or pulled position, the flap on the interior is horizontal or perpendicular to the firewall while the flap in the engine compartment is closed allowing fresh air to enter the cockpit.

The maintenance records were obtained from the airframe and powerplant mechanic who performed the last condition inspection. The airframe logbook contained only 1 entry and was for the last condition inspection which was signed off as being completed on October 11, 2012, or 9 days before the accident. The entry did not specify tachometer time nor airframe total time. The mechanic who performed the inspection later reported to the FAA-IIC that he signed the inspection off on the wrong date after being informed that the accident airplane was seen by another FAA inspector at FRG on October 8, 2012.

During the last condition inspection, the airframe and powerplant mechanic noted the left side exhaust was cracked. The exhaust was removed from the airplane, and taken to a non-aviation facility for repairs. The individual who performed the repair was interviewed by several FAA inspectors and the individual reported the general condition was, “…was about 50 percent good but pretty rotted and cracked at the ‘Y’ and very dirty.” The person did not have a jig but eyed the repair for alignment, and used ER705-2 steel rod for the repair. The person recommended getting a new exhaust for the left side and he also stated that he had no prior experience welding an aircraft exhaust system.

The airframe and powerplant mechanic reported the repaired exhaust looked good and he advised the accident pilot to check for stress/misalignment when installing the exhaust. The mechanic reported the pilot informed him there was no stress/misalignment when he installed the exhaust system onto the engine.

The mechanic who performed the last condition inspection reported he began the inspection about 1 week before the accident. When asked what reference data he used (maintenance manuals, 14 CFR Part 43, homemade checklist, etc.) he said he did not have any data and based his inspection on his years of experience as a mechanic. He was asked if he test flew the airplane after the condition inspection was performed and he said no, but did state that the accident pilot flew it on 3 takeoffs and landings and after the flight did not report any discrepancies.

The engine logbook contained entries from February 2, 1960 to the last entry dated October 11, 2012. Further review of the engine logbook revealed an entry dated March 10, 1967, indicating the Lycoming O-360-A1A engine was given a major overhaul and then installed in the accident airplane. No entries were noted between March 10, 1967 and June 7, 1975; November 18, 1982, and May 5, 1998; May 5, 1998, and “8/08”; “8/08” and “9/10”; and “9/10” to “October 11, 2012.” There was no record that the engine had been removed since installation in 1967, and there was no record excluding the entry for the last condition inspection indicating any work performed to the exhaust system.

Although the time since the last condition inspection could not be determined because the airframe and engine logbook entries did not contain the tachometer time, data downloaded from the installed global positioning system (GPS) receiver indicates that on October 7th, the GPS recorded the position to be at 1N2, and about 25 minutes later the GPS recorded the position to be on the ramp at FRG, which is the airport where the airplane is based. Recorded or calculated ground speed values were consistent with flight. Two roundtrip flights were recorded on October 13, 2012, and also on October 18, 2012. The total flight duration for the flights on October 13 totaled approximately 1 hour 27 minutes, while the total flight duration for the flights on October 18 totaled approximately 1 hour 12 minutes. The next recorded flights occurred on the accident date.

METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION

A surface observation weather report taken at HWV Airport at 1456, or approximately 10 minutes before the accident indicates the wind was from 200 degrees at 12 knots, the visibility was 10 miles, and clear skies existed. The temperature and dew point were 19 and 14 degrees Celsius respectively, and the altimeter setting was 29.68 inches of Mercury. The accident site was located approximately 5.8 nautical miles and 123 degrees from the HWV Airport.

FLIGHT RECORDERS

The airplane was not equipped, nor was it required to be equipped, with a cockpit voice recorder (CVR) or flight data recorder (FDR). However, the airplane was equipped with a Garmin GPSMAP 196 global positioning system (GPS) receiver. The component was retained and shipped to the NTSB Vehicle Recorders Laboratory located in Washington, DC.

Upon arrival at the Vehicle Recorder Laboratory, internal corrosion was noted. The main board was removed and rinsed in fresh water, and then air dried. The non-volatile memory chip was removed from the board, the memory image downloaded, and the contents decoded.

The track data extracted spanned the time period from August 26, 2012 through October 20, 2012. The accident flight was recorded starting at 18:50:41 UTC and ending at 19:04:22 UTC. Extracted data concerning the accident flight were overlayed onto Google Earth, and also placed in an Excel spreadsheet; the report is contained in the NTSB Public Docket.

WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION

The wreckage came to rest near the west edge of the Moriches Inlet jetty, East Moriches, New York; the airplane was inverted. Bystanders who watched the crash tied ropes to the airplane in an effort to keep it from sinking to the bottom. The wreckage was located at 40 degrees 45.9 minutes North latitude, and 072 degrees 45.3 minutes West longitude.

The airplane and all observed components were recovered from the water the same day about 2300 hours local. Pictures of the airplane following recovery from the water provided by the Suffolk County Police Department depict the right wing still attached. The right wing was removed, and the wreckage was transported to the Suffolk County Police Department Impound yard where it was secured.

Following recovery, the wreckage was inspected by NTSB, representatives of the FAA, and a representative of the engine manufacturer. All components necessary to sustain flight with the exception of both flaps were recovered. Inspection of all recovered components revealed no evidence of bird strikes. As first viewed, the left wing was fractured and separated just outboard of the attach point, but recovered. The horizontal and vertical stabilizers were separated, but recovered. The engine remained attached to the airframe and the propeller remained attached to the engine. A portion of the lower cowling remained partially attached; however, the upper engine cowling was not located or recovered.

Examination of the left wing and wing center section revealed the main spar remained attached to the inboard attach point but was bent aft and fractured due to bending overload about 12 inches outboard of the attach bolt. The aft spar attach bolt was in place but the aft spar fitting was bent forward and overload fractured about 1 inch outboard of the attach bolt. The separated section of the wing exhibited a 45 degree compression wrinkle on the upper wing skin surface that begins about midspan of the aileron extending through the main and aft spars to about the outboard edge of the aileron. Both aileron control cables rem

NTSB Probable Cause

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.