BEECH V35 — Rougemont, NC

What happened

The pilot was on a long cross-country flight when the airplane’s engine lost power completely. The airplane subsequently impacted terrain in a group of pine trees; a postimpact fire ensued. The cockpit and engine sustained extensive thermal damage. Examination of the engine revealed that the crankcase was breached adjacent to the Nos. 3 and 4 cylinders. Disassembly of the engine revealed damage consistent with oil starvation. Due to the extent of the postimpact fire damage, the source of the oil starvation could not be identified. The maintenance records for the engine were presumed to be onboard the airplane and destroyed by fire.

Postmortem toxicology testing by the FAA Forensic Sciences laboratory detected Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9-THC) and metabolites in the pilot’s heart blood and urine. Delta-9-THC is the primary psychoactive chemical in cannabis, including marijuana, hashish, and other cannabis products. Marijuana is a federal Schedule I controlled substance, and the FAA considers its use by pilots unacceptable, regardless of state laws. The postmortem concentrations of the marijuana metabolites indicate that the pilot had used a cannabis product and may have been experiencing associated impairing effects at the time of the accident. However, the precise timing of his last cannabis use, and whether significant impairment was present, could not be determined from the toxicological evidence alone.

An editorial "what led to it / how to avoid it" analysis for this accident is generated separately and will appear here.