Avia Stroitel AC-5M N263R

Summary

On 30 June 2020 at about 20:24 local time, a Avia Stroitel AC-5M registered N263R was involved in an accident near Bend, Oregon, 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

30 June 2020 at 20:24

Classification

Accident

Location

Bend, Oregon, United States

Nearest airport

Bend Muni (BDN)

Coordinates

44.1025, -121.1978

Aircraft

Avia Stroitel AC-5M

Registration

N263R

Category

Glider

Year built

2002

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bend → Bend

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR20LA201

1 person died.

A loss of control just after takeoff for reasons that could not be determined based on the available information.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was departing in the self-launching motorglider when the accident occurred. A witness stated that, once airborne, the glider began to climb rapidly. The glider then banked to the right and entered a “dive” to ground contact. Another witness stated that, shortly after takeoff, the glider “went directly vertical” then banked to the right before diving toward the ground. The glider came to rest on airport property near the departure end of the runway and was almost entirely consumed by postimpact fire, except for the left wing. The glider was not examined, and the wreckage was disposed of before examination could take place. The pilot’s experience in the accident glider was not determined. Autopsy revealed an implanted pacemaker/defibrillator that was not interrogated by the medical examiner. Although the condition of having an abnormal heart rhythm placed the pilot at increased risk of a sudden cardiac event, operational evidence does not suggest that such an event occurred, and it is unlikely that the pilot’s cardiovascular disease was a factor in this accident. Toxicology detected therapeutic levels of the antidepressant duloxetine in the pilot’s blood and the presence of the antidepressant amitriptyline and its active metabolite nortriptyline in the pilot’s liver tissue. Nortriptyline was also detected in cardiac blood, likely at therapeutic levels. Side effects of these medications include drowsiness and dizziness, especially when first starting the medications. The reason, duration of time he used the medication, and whether he had side effects from the medications are unknown; therefore, whether the effects of the pilot’s use of duloxetine and amitriptyline were a factor in this accident could not be determined. The glider’s rapid climb after takeoff and subsequent vertical descent are consistent with an inflight loss of control; however, because the glider was not examined after the accident, whether a mechanical malfunction or anomaly contributed to the loss of control could not be determined based on the available information.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.