Ballonghavariet i Texas i juli - Drugs kan være medvirkende årsak - Curt Lewis

 

Hot-Air-Balloon Pilot Had Drugs in System at Time of Deadly Crash

Power lines brought down Alfred 'Skip' Nichols' rig, killing 16 people in Texas in July

The partial frame of a hot-air balloon is visible above the crop in a field investigators combed after Alfred 'Skip' Nichols' rig went down in bad weather in Texas in July. Sixteen people, including Mr. Nichols, died in the accident. 

The pilot of a hot-air balloon that crashed in Texas in July had drugs in his system-including the chemicals found in codeine, sedatives, Ritalin and antidepressants-at the time of the accident, according to a National Transportation Safety Board investigation.

Alfred 'Skip' Nichols was piloting the balloon when it struck high-voltage power lines and crashed in Lockhart, Texas, about 30 miles south of Austin, on July 30. The crash killed 16 people, including Mr. Nichols.

The NTSB hasn't yet issued a statement on what caused the crash.

Witnesses said at the time of the crash that visibility was poor. Another nearby hot-air balloon company canceled its scheduled flights because of bad weather and forecasts for bad weather.

Federal investigators reported in August that they believed Mr. Nichols tried to duck through a break in clouds without noticing power lines below.

A toxicology report for 49-year-old Mr. Nichols, submitted as part of an NTSB investigation hearing last week, found seven potentially impairing compounds, including the sedative diazepam; antidepressant bupropion; muscle relaxer cyclobenzaprine; a synthetic codeine analog; an antihistamine; a controlled-substance stimulant, and the narcotic pain reliever oxycodone.

Commercial hot-air-balloon pilots aren't required to have medical certificates to fly, but Federal Aviation Administration instructions state that airmen shouldn't go aloft when using controlled substances, antidepressants, ADD or ADHD medications, sedatives or tranquilizers.

FAA rules mandate significantly stricter scrutiny and regular medical exams for pilots of any fixed-wing aircraft or helicopters carrying people for hire-regardless of the number of passengers. Agency officials have been debating how to respond to that discrepancy, and are expected to propose steps to beef up licensing requirements for hot-air balloon operators and pilots.

Meanwhile, industry officials and regulators have joined forces to support voluntary efforts to enhance safety programs, including pilot education and focus on spreading best operational practices. As part of their final report, federal accident investigators are expected to call for stepped-up medical and licensing rules for pilots working for such sightseeing balloon companies.

Pilots are required to report convictions for driving offenses related to drugs or alcohol. Mr. Nichols, according to the NTSB report, marked "no" on all questions about medical conditions, medications and convictions in a 1996 medical certification.

FBI records showed Mr. Nichols was arrested twice for felony drug possession in 1987-before he applied for that certificate. Among other criminal incidents, he was also arrested for felony drug possession in 1998 and 1999, incarcerated for 18 months between 2002 and 2004 for being a DWI "persistent offender," and jailed again from July 2010 to January 2012 for being a DWI "aggravated offender."

His driver's license was revoked in 2010, and he wasn't eligible to get a new one until 2020.

An FAA security office in 2013 marked on his file five separate alcohol-related driving convictions and license actions, including one that occurred before he applied for the 1996 medical certificate. The FAA didn't take any legal enforcement action at the time of a 2013 letter alerting Mr. Nichols to the issues, but said he could be suspended or have his certification revoked in case of future violations.

According to the NTSB investigation, a 2013 psychologist report found Mr. Nichols to have a history of depression and alcohol and substance abuse. The report said, "He now works in reservations but often makes errors due to distractibility and forgetfulness."

Alan Thomas Lirette, who worked with Mr. Nichols, said in an interview with NTSB investigators that he knew Mr. Nichols had a "colorful" past but believed he had turned his life around.