Unfit to fly

On June 1, 2016, a 45-year-old pilot intentionally flew a Cessna 150 into a steel silo in Penwell, Texas. He had called his wife and told her he was going to kill himself. She immediately alerted police, but the aircraft was already underway. The NTSB’s accident investigation suggested the airman’s medical was denied because of “multiple alcohol-related events” and was later surrendered.

On May 29, 2019, a pilot in Cape May, New Jersey, crashed his Mooney M20J into the Atlantic Ocean just offshore. Prior to the accident, several beachgoers described seeing the airplane flying parallel to the beach about 10 feet above the water’s surface. The airplane entered a steep climb, “stalled, turned downward, and plunged almost straight into the water.”

On April 13, 2023, in Mammoth Springs, Arkansas, a Junior Ace airplane was substantially damaged when it impacted with terrain in a rock quarry at high speed. Witnesses near the accident site reported that they had seen the aircraft circling the quarry several times and then dive into a 75-foot rock wall.

In the final reports on these accidents, the NTSB does not delve into the details about why each of these pilots decided to end their lives in this way, and information about the crashes—beyond the physical evidence—is sometimes scarce. We can conclude, however, that each of these accident pilots was in crisis and did not receive adequate, timely support.

Probably one of the most notorious general aviation accidents involving mental health occurred on August 31, 2022, in Buxton, North Dakota, when a University of North Dakota student took his own life in a Piper PA–28. He had depression and felt helpless, fearing he would have to give up his dreams of an aviation career if he admitted his illness. In a suicide letter to his family, he pleaded, “If you can do anything for me, try to change the FAA rules so that other young pilots don’t have to go through what I went through.”

This accident in particular prompted the FAA to revisit its mental health protocols, and the agency has pledged improvement.

In 2024, the FAA said it “invested in a number of resources to eliminate the stigma around mental health in the aviation community.” Its goal: to encourage pilots to seek help if they need it, rather than suffering alone and in silence. It added that most mental health conditions, if treated, do not disqualify a pilot from flying.

That said, pilots appear to continue to mistrust the regulator.

While conclusive figures are difficult to come by, it’s estimated that a notable percentage of pilots either self-medicate without informing their aviation medical examiners, or they don’t address possible mental health issues at all. The fear of losing their medical certificate and, ultimately, their passion and/or careers, looms large for those who admit to seeking professional care.

Mental health issues do not discriminate; they can affect anyone, anywhere, at any time. So, it’s important that pilots know how to access resources that will support and sustain their fitness to fly and allow them to heal, without shame and without penalty. Equally important is for pilots’ own personal networks to recognize the symptoms and warning signs. Often, in the aftermath of an event, those closest to an individual say they never saw it coming. As a community of aviators, we should be able to prevent these fatalities.

[email protected]

For more information on the FAA’s mental health initiatives: faa.gov/pilot-mental-fitness