FAA Probes Health of Pilot Who Crashed in Sea

The Federal Aviation Administration said Monday that it is investigating whether Washington lawyer Thomas L. Root, who suffered a gunshot wound during a flight that ended when his small airplane crashed into the Atlantic Ocean July 13, is physically competent to continue flying.

“We have sent him a letter of investigation,” said FAA spokesman Fred Farrar. “We’re investigating to see if he still qualifies for an FAA medical certificate.”

But Farrar said that the FAA is bringing no charges against Root, who said he blacked out before the crash. “We have no regulations saying a pilot can’t pass out,” Farrar said.

Root has said that he blacked out from a carbon monoxide leak in the plane and that he received his gunshot wound when his loose handgun went off in the cockpit as his plane crashed. Doctors later confirmed that carbon monoxide was found in his lungs.

There was no evidence of a shooting in tapes released by the FAA Monday of conversations between Root, who was alone in the plane, and air traffic controllers. Farrar refused to respond to suggestions that Root’s wound was self-inflicted.

The flight of Root’s Cessna 210 Centurion originated at Washington’s National Airport and was destined for Rocky Mount, N.C. But an hour into the flight, Root radioed controllers that he was feeling ill.

“I’m having a little problem up here,” Root said in the tapes. “ . . . Having a little trouble breathing. . . . How far am I to Rocky Mount?”

“You are about 17 minutes from Rocky Mount,” the tower replied.

“Ah, ah, one three,” Root said before ending the transmission. The numbers Root mentioned were the first two digits of his plane’s identification code.

Thirty minutes later, an Army aircraft flying alongside Root’s plane reported: “The pilot is slumped over.” Two Marine F-14 fighters intercepted Root’s aircraft 15 minutes later near Norfolk, Va.

Root apparently had activated the automatic pilot to maintain an altitude of 10,000 feet before losing consciousness. The aircraft continued out to sea and, half an hour later, ran out of fuel and plunged into the Atlantic near the Bahamas.

One of Root’s clients, Sonrise Management Services, filed a $584,600 lawsuit against him six days after the crash, alleging that Root did not perform contracted legal services, misused funds and double-billed Sonrise for services rendered.

Sonrise, based in Columbus, Ga., manages small FM radio stations across the country, including 16 in California. Root, who lives in Arlington, Va., has since filed for bankruptcy to protect his law firm.