Pretty much what has been said all along. Too much airplane, coupled with not enough skill. Also were the apparent ingestion of a lot of drugs that were not initially reported to the FAA.... She was basically a disaster waiting to happen.
TN Flygirl Final Accident Report
- Thread starter billt460
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Seems like all CFIs that flew with her didn't have much confidence in her ability to handle any airplane, let alone the Bonanza she bought. It took her almost 190 hours to get her PPL She didn't take personal responsibility to learn the systems on her aircraft, etc.
A ground analogy would be someone who took many attempts to get a drivers license, then ran out and bought a Porsche 911 GT3.
A ground analogy would be someone who took many attempts to get a drivers license, then ran out and bought a Porsche 911 GT3.
She was fairly attractive, and had a good business, and was very financially successful from it. She became a person that a lot of people wouldn't say no to.... But should have. Even her father rode along with her to the very end. From all of it she became her own worst enemy.
Doctors and lawyers bought Porsche 911 turbos in the 80's and they were known as widowmakers. Are CFI's pushing students through training quicker than previously? It does seem like there have been more higher profile accidents over the last few years. I do hear complaints from old timer pilots in my eaa chapter that newer students aren't "as good as they used to be" but that could be just rise colored glasses.
Doctors & lawyers bought Beechcraft V-tail Bonazas too. These aircraft became known as "the forked tail dr killer".
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The second video is most disturbing. She has ZERO sense of direction. She probably doesn't even know the sun rises in the east. She's the type who would drive the wrong way on an interstate.
Scott
The second video is most disturbing. She has ZERO sense of direction. She probably doesn't even know the sun rises in the east. She's the type who would drive the wrong way on an interstate.
Scott
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Except that that analogy fails to capture the difference because you drive the Porsche on normal streets.
But when you fly the airplane it’s flying much closer to its maximum capability all the time.
She wasn’t a pilot. She was an airplane owner. Taking 190 hours to get your private pilots - that is genuinely shocking. That’s an extraordinarily slow rate of progress.
Which was reflected in her instructor‘s commentary on her abilities - she didn’t actually know how to operate the debonair and she relied on the systems to operate it, shockingly, without understanding how the trim worked.
Not understanding how trim works in an airplane is a lot like not understanding how a steering wheel works in a car.
Couple all of that poor competence with someone who is taking psycho-active drugs?
Surprised that she lasted that long.
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Pilot Debrief on YT does a good job covering her inadequacies.
I'm assuming she got famous and the money followed all because of youtube.
Not really. She owned a type of wood recovery company that turned distressed barn wood into high end flooring. And also did a lot of high end interior decorating. She was a good business woman..... Just a lousy pilot.
Perhaps someone with better knowledge in the medical profession can chime in here who knows more. But that accident completely shredded that aircraft. It augered in at over 220 MPH. The bodies had to be completely shredded as well.
That said, how can they get an accurate drug toxicology report with that much damage done to the body? Most of the parts of that airplane looked like they could pass through a basketball hoop. The bodies couldn't have been in any better condition.
That said, how can they get an accurate drug toxicology report with that much damage done to the body? Most of the parts of that airplane looked like they could pass through a basketball hoop. The bodies couldn't have been in any better condition.
It is sad that during her training instructor feedback she never understood or accepted what the instructors were "likely" communicating to her with respect to her ability fly the aircraft and to manage aircraft systems while staying ahead of the aircraft.
Sometimes it is necessary to become "brutally honest" with someone who is not accepting reality to avoid them hurting themselves and others.
I have seen similar cases in my flying circle over the years. Most never completed their private check ride with the examiner.
Sounds like she was a nice person with financial means to upgrade her aircraft to a higher performance single engine aircraft. Just not the ability to master her first basic low performance aircraft.. I wonder who signed her off for her "one time instructor logbook endorsement" before operating as PIC of a high performance aircraft?
The addition of drugs not compatible with pilot activities and I suspect operating/hosting a YouTube operation strained her ability to focus completely on her learning to become a proficient pilot with a basic low performance basic aircraft . She might never had the ability to become a capable proficient and safe pilot. I wonder how her private check ride went. My private check ride had added distractions thrown in from a great examiner who did give away a pass grade for poor performance( Loose fasteners placed under the aircraft to make sure preflight found them, passenger door opened during initial departure, crosswind landings, multiple questions during higher work load periods, and of course a simulated engine failure when doing air work at altitude).
I think Astro comment was correct. She was an Aircraft Owner, not a Pilot.
Sometimes it is necessary to become "brutally honest" with someone who is not accepting reality to avoid them hurting themselves and others.
I have seen similar cases in my flying circle over the years. Most never completed their private check ride with the examiner.
Sounds like she was a nice person with financial means to upgrade her aircraft to a higher performance single engine aircraft. Just not the ability to master her first basic low performance aircraft.. I wonder who signed her off for her "one time instructor logbook endorsement" before operating as PIC of a high performance aircraft?
The addition of drugs not compatible with pilot activities and I suspect operating/hosting a YouTube operation strained her ability to focus completely on her learning to become a proficient pilot with a basic low performance basic aircraft . She might never had the ability to become a capable proficient and safe pilot. I wonder how her private check ride went. My private check ride had added distractions thrown in from a great examiner who did give away a pass grade for poor performance( Loose fasteners placed under the aircraft to make sure preflight found them, passenger door opened during initial departure, crosswind landings, multiple questions during higher work load periods, and of course a simulated engine failure when doing air work at altitude).
I think Astro comment was correct. She was an Aircraft Owner, not a Pilot.
After hearing her say "this way or that way" pointing around is insane. She is flying a plane like a teen on a permit is driving a car asking a passenger give directions to turn into a street soon. I'd never expect something like that to happen. How you become a pilot while being clueless about basic navigation doesn't make sense to me.
How time sensitive after death is it to perform these tests? Or once death occurs, do the drugs remain suspended in the tissue?
Obtaining a specimen in a timely manner would be very important; the sooner, the better. However, there would be other factors such as last ingestion time, chronic use, etc. Plus, most medications are metabolized by the liver. The Buspirone was likely a daily medication. The Xanax was likely as needed. The Trazodone was likely daily as well, but could have been used specifically at bedtime to aid with sleep issues. The Zofran (ondansetron) by itself doesn’t cause impairment but can lead to a prolonged qt interval. Not something you’d want to happen while flying if it results in a cardiac arrhythmia.
Yeah, I knew I was going to be called out for omitting the Z-axis.
It's also reported she never really figured out how to use radios correctly. I find it interesting that there are quite a few "pilots" who are uncomfortable with their radios, as they trained at uncontrolled airports and avoided controlled airspace. What comes to mind is watching Trent Palmer and his buddies flying to/from Oshkosh and having to stop at a Class D airport for fuel and sweating on how to talk to the tower correctly.
