On May 25, 2019, about 0923 eastern daylight time, a Cessna TR182 was destroyed when it hit terrain during a visual approach to McKinnon–St. Simons Island Airport (KSSI) in St. Simons Island, Georgia. The commercial pilot was fatally injured.
Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and an instrument flight rules flight plan was filed for the cross-country flight, which originated from Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport (KSAV) about 0859.
According to information from the FAA, at 0919, the flight was cleared for the visual approach to Runway 22 at KSSI, and the pilot was instructed to switch the radio frequency to the KSSI common traffic advisory frequency, which he acknowledged. Review of recordings of the common traffic advisory frequency revealed that the pilot reported the airplane was 9 miles north of, and on a straight-in approach to, Runway 22.
No further communication from the pilot was received, and radar contact with the airplane was lost at 0923, when the airplane was about 5 miles northeast of KSSI at an altitude of 900 feet mean sea level (msl). (That altitude is usually where radar coverage is lost in that area.)
Further review of the radar data revealed that the airplane made a gradual descent from an en route altitude of 4,000 to 1,700 feet msl. The final two radar targets, at 1,300 and 900 feet msl, each indicated that the airplane descended 400 feet in about 4 seconds (between 1,700 and 1,300 ft msl and between 1,300 and 900 ft msl).
A witness subsequently observed a fire in a wooded area of a sparsely populated section of a residential development and notified law enforcement, who found the airplane wreckage about 5 miles north of KSSI, near the last radar target.
The recorded weather at KSSI at 0853 was wind from 260° at 10 knots, visibility 10 miles, clear sky, temperature 27°C, dew point 17°C, and altimeter 30.15 inches of mercury.
The airplane came to rest nose down in a crater that was about 3 feet deep, and the airplane was oriented along a magnetic heading of 210°. Most of the airplane was consumed by a post-crash fire. Two tree strikes were observed immediately above the wreckage. No debris path was observed.
The engine and forward fuselage remained in the crater. The landing gear was partially extended, but the preimpact position of the landing gear could not be confirmed. The left wing was folded inverted near the crater. The left flap remained attached and was partially melted. The left aileron had partially separated and melted. The right wing sustained more fire and impact damage than the left wing. The right flap separated and sustained impact and thermal damage. The right aileron separated and sustained impact and thermal damage. Measurement of the flap actuator corresponded to a flaps retracted position. The left elevator separated, and the right elevator melted near the elevator trim jackscrew. Measurement of the jackscrew corresponded to a 20° tab up (nose-down) elevator trim position, but the actuator had separated from the airframe, and the elevator trim cable exhibited a broom straw separation. The rudder separated and was fragmented.
Flight control continuity was confirmed from the elevator and rudder bellcranks to the cabin area. Continuity was confirmed from the left aileron to the left wing root, and control cables from the right wing were identified but had been partially consumed by fire.
The engine was recovered from the crater and separated from the airframe for examination. The propeller had separated from the engine and was also recovered from the crater. One propeller blade exhibited s-bending and leading-edge gouges, another propeller blade exhibited tip curling and bending, and the remaining propeller blade sustained a tip separation. The valve covers and top spark plugs were removed from the engine; the spark plug electrodes were intact and gray in color. The rear engine accessories were also removed. The single-drive dual magneto sustained impact damage and could not be tested. The engine-driven fuel pump and propeller governor also sustained impact damage and could not be tested. The fuel strainer screen was recovered, and no debris in the screen was observed. The carburetor sustained impact damage; its float was removed, which revealed that it had also sustained impact damage. The front section of the engine had sustained impact damage, and the crankshaft could not be manually rotated via an accessory gear drive; borescope examination of all six cylinders did not reveal any preimpact mechanical malfunctions.
The pilot, 80, held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land, airplane multiengine land, and instrument airplane. He also held a flight instructor certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land and instrument airplane. His most recent FAA second-class medical certificate, which was expired at the time of the accident, was issued on March 1, 2017, with the limitation that he have glasses available for near vision and use hearing amplification. At that time, the pilot reported a total flight experience of 4,600 hours. The pilot had a BasicMed dated Feb. 27, 2018.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s loss of airplane control during approach for undetermined reasons.
A mystery here that points to some medical/attention problem? Nothing especially challenging to suggest skill issue.
This May 2019 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.
My guess would be medical emergency.
I’ve never flown a C182T. But what I question is, could this have been runaway trim or an A/P “coupled” problem for some reason?
I’ve had something similar happen in a few different Pipers. So I’m just asking.
This accident is similar to an one that killed a friend in his C182T a few years ago. In that accident, like this one, CFIT for unknown reasons was the best guess. He was about 82 and had bought the aircraft a couple of years prior to the accident. Conditions were likely IMC in smoke at the time. The aircraft burned on impact so none of the data in the glass panel could be extracted. His accident was a pretty sad event.