Corbin/King OSPREY 2 N192DC

Summary

On 6 December 1999 at about 00:00 local time, a Corbin/King OSPREY 2 registered N192DC was involved in an accident near Chula Vista, California, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

6 December 1999 at 00:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Chula Vista, California, United States

Coordinates

32.6602, -116.9402

Aircraft

Corbin/King OSPREY 2

Registration

N192DC

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

San Diego → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX00LA049

1 person died.

The pilot exceeded the design stress limits of the airplane resulting in wing overload and separation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane came to rest in a lake after witnesses heard a loud noise. They saw the airplane in a tight spiral and pieces of it were floating in trail. The engine sound changed from a loud to a softer tone as the airplane rotated. Earlier in the afternoon, the pilot had visited a retired FAA inspector in Ramona, California, where he had appeared to be in good health and spirits. The inspector looked at the airplane prior to departure and did not notice anything unusual. The engine sounded good and was running strong when it taxied away from his hangar. Both wings and the fuselage/tail assembly were found floating. The left wing and canopy were lightly damaged. The left wing fractured and separated near the fuselage in a downward direction. The rest of the airplane was highly damaged and fragmented. Investigators established flight control continuity. They established engine valve train and accessory gear continuity. The oil screen was clean and the spark plug color indicated normal operation. They discovered no discrepancies that would have precluded normal operation of the airframe or engine. Toxicological testing returned a positive result for amitriptyline and nortriptyline. Amitriptyline is one of the most sedating of the antidepressants, and is given almost exclusively in the evenings because of these effects. The levels found in the pilot's blood suggested regular use of a low dosage of the medication as he and his doctor had previously described in the application for his airman's medical certificate. It is unclear what effect, if any, such low levels would have on the pilot's performance. The nature of the accident does not suggest that the medication played a significant role. However, it is possible that the medication and/or the condition for which it was being taken resulted in less than optimum response to an evolving emergency condition.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.