Amateur-built RV-7A accident near Marion, Texas, June 28, 2013
On June 28, 2013 at about 2:16 am local time, a 2008 amateur-built RV-7A, registered N445RV, was destroyed in an accident during maneuvering (low-alt flying) near Marion, Texas (Zuehl airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s sudden incapacitation and natural death as a result of cardiovascular disease.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 28, 2013 · about 2:16 am local time · cases in 2013
- Place
- Marion, Texas · Zuehl · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built RV-7A, built 2008
- Registration
- N445RV · no longer on the register · serial 71938
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Witnesses reported observing the pilot make two unsuccessful landing attempts in the dark at the unlit airport. The airplane's landing lights were not on. During a third landing attempt, the airplane collided with power lines and trees. The pilot had a history of heart disease and had been given a special issuance third-class airman medical certificate; however, it was not valid at the time of the accident. A toxicology report indicated the use of Losartan, a prescription medication used to treat high blood pressure. Although the autopsy did not identify evidence of a recent heart attack, the autopsy did identify evidence indicating that the pilot was at risk for a sudden cardiac event that could result in incapacitation and concluded that the pilot died as a result of hypertensive and arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease. It is likely that the pilot's sudden incapacitation and death during the flight resulted in the accident.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Low altitude operation/event during maneuvering (low-alt flying) defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during maneuvering (low-alt flying)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Physical › Impairment/incapacitation › Cardiovascular › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,361 hours in all; 500 in this make and model; 3 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Maximum gross weight: 1,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A2A (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: E70 Seguin TX at 2:04 am
- Destination: 1TE4 Marion TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 3,000 ft by 200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 160° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 29.93 inHg
- Observation at 1:51 am from KBAZ, 14 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
15 documents, released by the NTSB on January 26, 2015. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N445RV: not on the register today · the record of its deregistration
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A2A 38 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Zuehl Airport · nearest airport
- Seguin Airport · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Texas 6,244 since 1982 · 1,061 in the last ten years
- Texas 29,986 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/CEN13LA377.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.