Deceased Pilot Had Cocaine In His System, History of Substance Abuse

The NTSB has ruled lax FAA medical certification procedures may have been partly to blame for a June 14, 2004 accident that claimed the life of an experienced commercial pilot in Kodiak, AK.

The pilot, Mark Mueller, had cocaine, alcohol, and OTC cold medication in his system when he failed to follow missed approach procedures while attempting to land at Kodiak Airport (PADQ) in near zero-zero visibility conditions, according to the report.

Witnesses saw Mueller's Beech C-45 Volpar -- a twin-turboprop, tricycle-gear conversion of a 1952 Beech 18 (file photo of type, above) -- flying low over the water near Long Island, approximately five miles east of the airport, just before the plane impacted terrain.

Dense fog, possible engine failure and company procedures allowing single-pilot IFR operations are listed by the NTSB as the probable causes of the accident. However, the report goes on to state "additional factors were the pilot's impairment from cocaine, alcohol and over the counter cold medication, and the FAA's inadequate medical certification of the pilot and follow-up of his known substance abuse problems."

The FAA was quick to denounce the NTSB ruling. Willis Simmons, the FAA regional flight surgeon in Alaska, told the Anchorage Daily News "I don't know that we knew he had substance abuse problems. He had a history of substance abuse problems. There's a difference."

According to Simmons, the FAA relies mostly on a pilot's honesty, or their employer reports, in obtaining information on possible substance abuse. Occasionally, the agency may also hear of such problems from law enforcement, or tipsters.

The NTSB report states Mueller had a history of substance abuse spanning more than a decade. At the time of his death, Mueller was also facing a license suspension hearing for landing an airplane on a taxiway at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport a month earlier. The FAA stated Mueller was not tested for drugs or alcohol at the time of that incident, nor was such a test necessarily warranted.

Mueller had previously forfeited his ticket in March 1990, after testing positive for cocaine following the death of his wife. Several other incidents of substance abuse, rumors of same, and a drunk driving charge that was later judged to be "isolated" were listed on the NTSB report.

At the time of his death, Mueller had a recently renewed First Class Medical Certificate, as well as an ATP rating.

"This guy was very, very qualified and, quite frankly, probably a very talented pilot in terms of his skill level," said NTSB investigator Clint Johnson.

The FAA has no legal authority to conduct drug tests on pilots, relying instead on employers to conduct initial tests and random screenings. The NTSB found after Mueller passed a pre-employment drug screen in 2001 for the company he was employed with up to the time of his death, he was not selected again to be tested.

FMI: NTSB Report