Cessna 172S N862SP

Summary

On 4 July 2000 at about 02:32 local time, a Cessna 172S registered N862SP, operated by Flight Safety Alaska, Inc., was involved in an accident near Whittier, Alaska, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. No probable cause statement is available for this record.

Date

4 July 2000 at 02:32

Classification

Accident

Location

Whittier, Alaska, United States

Coordinates

60.8000, -148.2500

Aircraft

Cessna 172S

Registration

N862SP

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Flight Safety Alaska, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Anchorage → Middleton Is.

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC00FA082

1 person died.

The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. No probable cause statement is present in the source data.

Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.

Read the full NTSB narrative

A private pilot departed from Merrill Field, Anchorage, Alaska, in a rented, wheel-equipped airplane. Prior to his departure, the pilot left an envelope in a friend's car, telling the friend not to open it until after the pilot had departed. The envelope contained a power of attorney, transferring all of the pilot's property to his brother, and a letter entitled "Message in a Bottle." About one hour after the airplane departed from the flight school, a witness aboard a boat saw the accident airplane flying very low over the water. The witness said that the wings were rocking back and forth, with the wingtips almost touching the water. He added that the airplane entered a collision course with his boat, which required his abrupt and evasive action to avoid being struck by the airplane. Numerous other witnesses in the area reported similar encounters with the same airplane. About one hour later, a passing airplane received a distress call from the accident airplane pilot stating the he had a loss of engine power, and that he was going down. The U.S. Coast Guard recovered the pilot's floating body. The airplane sank in deep ocean waters. Toxicology tests revealed Alcohol, Cocaine, and Valium in the pilot's blood, muscles, and organ tissue. The postmortem examination ruled the cause of death as a suicide. The pilot had a history of substance abuse, had previously been convicted of first-degree arson, and was being sought by local police for a recent arson.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.