Republic P 47D accident near New York, New York, May 27, 2016

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

The World War II-era fighter airplane was part of a three-ship formation performing a photo shoot. About 1,000 ft above the water, the pilot of the accident airplane made a distress call to air traffic control, stating that he had "smoke," and he subsequently ditched the airplane. The airplane landed on the water and subsequently sank. Another pilot in the formation reported that the canopy was partially open before the ditching. The pilot was unable to egress the airplane and drowned. Examination of the engine revealed evidence of internal seizure. Damage to the inside of the crankcase prevented the removal of cylinders and disassembly of the engine. Oil and metallic fragments were found inside the engine's supercharger. Although the supercharger may have failed as the initiating event, the reason for the engine failure could not be determined due to the excessive internal damage to the engine. Examination of the pilot's seat belt/shoulder harness restraints and canopy operation, including a functional test of the jettison T-handle, did not reveal evidence of any in-flight anomaly or failure. Although the airplane's operating instructions called for the pilot to jettison the canopy before ditching, the pilot did not do so, and was subsequently unable to fully open the canopy and egress the airplane as it sank. Toxicology testing revealed diphenhydramine, an impairing medication that causes sedation, altered mood, and impaired cognitive and psychomotor performance in blood and urine specimens. However, the level of diphenhydramine in blood was too low to quantify and therefore any effects from it likely did not contribute to 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.