Amphibious float-equipped Cessna A185F, N369E: Pilot error killed Telford Aviation founder, investigators say. Accident occurred August 01, 2010 in Rockwood, Maine.

Telford Allen II, founder of Telford Aviation Services.

ROCKWOOD, Maine — Pilot error possibly arising from judgment impaired by an over-the-counter allergy medicine caused the floatplane crash that killed the founder of Telford Aviation on Moosehead Lake last year, federal investigators said Tuesday.

A probable cause determination by the National Transportation Safety Board said that Telford Allen II, 64, of Rockwood accidentally crashed his Cessna A185F on Aug. 1, 2010, because landing gear he failed to raise after the plane took off from a Rangeley airfield caught the water.

Telford, investigators said, had taken enough of an over-the-counter antihistamine, diphenhydramine, to probably impair his judgment. His anticipating surgery for stomach cancer might have also contributed to the accident, the report states.

“While the pilot may have been having difficulty sleeping due to back pain or his impending surgery or possible chemotherapy, the investigation was unable to determine that fatigue was a factor in the accident,” the report states.

The crash instantly killed Telford and injured a passenger, Natalie Holmes-Moody, 61, of Rockwood.

Allen was trying to land his floatplane near his home in Rockwood at the mouth of the Moose River off Route 6 when the accident occurred, police have said.

Holmes-Moody told state police that on the morning of the accident, Allen “wasn’t feeling well” but that after breakfast “he was feeling much better and felt he was fine to fly.” She also reported that “they had a normal flight” and the area of the accident was “the same area he always lands,” the report states.

NTSB Identification: ERA10LA390
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Sunday, August 01, 2010 in Rockwood, ME
Probable Cause Approval Date: 10/17/2011
Aircraft: CESSNA A185F, registration: N369E
Injuries: 1 Fatal,1 Uninjured. The amphibious float-equipped airplane departed from a paved runway for the flight, where a water landing on a lake was to be made. The pilot did not raise the landing gear after takeoff. Upon reaching the destination, the landing gear contacted the water during landing and the airplane abruptly nosed over. The airplane came to rest floating inverted, suspended by the floats. The month preceding the accident the pilot had several medical tests performed and was anticipating surgery for the removal of stomach cancer. While the pilot may have been having difficulty sleeping due to back pain or his impending surgery or possible chemotherapy, the investigation was unable to determine that fatigue was a factor in the accident. His toxicology results indicated recent use of diphenhydramine (an over-the-counter antihistamine) at levels that would have likely been impairing at the time of the accident.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
The pilot's failure to retract the landing gear prior to a water landing. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's impairment due to medication. Full narrative available