Amateur-built STOL CH 701 accident near Mount Vernon, Indiana, October 24, 2014
On October 24, 2014 at about 11:00 pm local time, a 2004 amateur-built STOL CH 701, registered N34WS, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering (low-alt flying) near Mount Vernon, Indiana. 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 impairment due to the ingestion of alcohol and sedating medications, which led to her improper decision to conduct low-level flight, affected her ability to safety operate the airplane, and resulted in her failure to maintain clearance from power lines.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 24, 2014 · about 11:00 pm local time
- Place
- Mount Vernon, Indiana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built STOL CH 701, built 2004
- Registration
- N34WS · no longer on the register · serial 7-5218
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The private pilot was conducting a local personal flight. A witness who was working in a field reported observing the pilot flying the airplane about 30 ft above ground level and 50 ft to his right. The airplane banked right and then impacted power lines. The power lines arced when the airplane contacted them, and the airplane subsequently caught on fire and was fully engulfed in fire when the witness arrived at the accident site. An examination of the airplane did not reveal any preimpact anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Toxicological testing detected ethanol at 0.148 grams per deciliter (gm/dl) in the vitreous (Federal Aviation Administration regulations only allow 0.040 gm/dl of ethanol) and relatively similar levels of ethanol in the pilot's brain and blood specimens, which indicates that most of the ethanol was likely due to ingestion rather than postmortem production; therefore, she was likely intoxicated and impaired by ethanol at the time of the accident. In addition, the pilot had significant levels of diazepam and diphenhydramine in her heart blood. The detected levels for both drugs were likely therapeutic; however, in regular use, diazepam causes sedation and diphenhydramine causes marked sedation. Therefore, the pilot was likely impaired by both diazepam and diphenhydramine at the time of the accident. In summary, the pilot's judgment and psychomotor functions were likely significantly impaired by a combination of ethanol intoxication and the effects of both diazepam and diphenhydramine at the time of the accident. The combined effects of these impairing substances likely led to the pilot's improper decision to conduct low-level flight, affected her ability to safely operate the airplane, and resulted in her failure to maintain clearance from power lines.
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
- Miscellaneous/other during prior to flight
- 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 › Alcohol › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Physical › Impairment/incapacitation › Prescription medication › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Wire › Awareness of condition
- cause Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring environment › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Altitude › Not attained/maintained
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 987 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 912 ULS (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: Mount Vernon IN
- Destination: Mount Vernon IN
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,700 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
- Observation at 10:55 pm from KEHR, 8 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
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 never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.