Hy-Tek Hurricane accident near Redcrest, CA
On May 4, 2017, a Hy-Tek Hurricane (airplane) was involved in an accident near Redcrest, CA. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- May 4, 2017
- Place
- Redcrest, CA
- Aircraft
- Hy-Tek Hurricane · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 40.339°N, 123.833°W
- NTSB ID
- 20170615X73758
Official records · WPR17LA126
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn May 4, 2017, about 0945 Pacific daylight time, an unregistered experimental amateur-built Hy-Tek Hurricane airplane collided with terrain during the final approach to landing on a riverbed near Redcrest, California. The noncertificated pilot received fatal injuries, and the airplane was substantially damaged. The airplane was owned by the pilot. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan had been filed for the local flight, which departed about 0925 from a sandbar on the river, which was near the pilot's home in Redcrest. The pilot's father reported that, about 20 minutes after the flight departed, he heard the airplane returning to the area and noted that the engine was sputtering. He reported that the engine quit shortly thereafter and that the airplane subsequently nosed down into the ground along the shoreline of the Eel River. Personnel from the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office, Eureka, California, responded to the accident site about 1130. A deputy officer reported that the airplane wreckage had been brought to the shoreline of the Eel River by unknown subjects before he arrived on scene and that the pilot's body was not located within the wreckage. On May 14, 2017, after an extensive search by the sheriff's office and volunteers, the pilot's body was recovered in a shallow area of the Eel River about 2.5 miles downriver from the accident site. On June 15, 2017, the pilot's father reported the accident to the National Transportation Safety Board. During a postaccident interview, the pilot's wife repor
Probable cause
The noncertificated pilot's impairment from methamphetamine and alcohol use, which precluded the pilot from maintaining control of the airplane after a loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined based on available information.
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Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
