Nicholson THORP T-18CWS N24WN

Summary

On 3 September 2000 at about 00:00 local time, a Nicholson THORP T-18CWS registered N24WN was involved in an accident near Tooele, Utah, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

3 September 2000 at 00:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Tooele, Utah, United States

Coordinates

40.5709, -112.3291

Aircraft

Nicholson THORP T-18CWS

Registration

N24WN

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Wendover → Salt Lake City

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN00LA163

2 people died.

Failure by the pilot to maintain control of the airplane during aerobatic maneuvers as a result of his alcohol impairment. Factors were: The pilot's inadequate planning and decision making and the inadequate altitude he choose for maneuvering.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Witnesses reported that they had seen the airplane doing aerobatics and that it was traveling around 125 to 150 knots, at about 100 to 150 feet above the ground when it went straight up, made a half turn, dropped tail first, rolled over into a dive and impacted the ground. An FAA inspector stated that his examination of the accident site indicated that the airplane impacted the ground in a near vertical attitude. The sheriff reported that the cockpit smelled of alcohol. Toxicology tests identified the pilot's blood alcohol concentration (BAC) as .22% in muscle and .23% in kidney, three times Utah's legal intoxication level of .08%. The pilot was involved in a previous accident involving the same airplane, which received substantial damage when it collided with power lines during a precautionary landing. The Sheriff's Office report on the first accident states that, upon arriving at the site, the trooper could not locate the pilot. He reported evidence of alcohol at the scene, and stated that witnesses said the pilot appeared to be intoxicated.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.