American Champion (Acac) 7ECA N11037
15 August 2004 · Manchester, California, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 15 August 2004 at about 20:00 local time, a American Champion (Acac) 7ECA registered N11037 was involved in an accident near Manchester, California, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 20:00
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Manchester, California, United States
- Nearest airport
- Little River Airport (O48)
- Coordinates
- 39.0128, -123.3828
- Aircraft
- American Champion (Acac) 7ECA
- Registration
- N11037
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Little River → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- LAX04LA292
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Probable cause
maintenance personnel's failure to adequately torque the top spark plug on the number one cylinder, which resulted in a separation of that plug and a loss of engine power.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The airplane collided with transmission wires and terrain during a forced landing following a loss of engine power. The pilot said that while in cruise flight, the engine began a serve vibration and then "exploded." The pilot maneuvered the airplane in a gliding configuration and selected a field to execute a forced landing. While on a final approach to the selected landing surface, the airplane collided with transmission lines and continued to descend toward the field, touching down hard. The top spark plug was absent from the right rear cylinder [the number one cylinder] and several ignition leads were loose. The engine had undergone an annual inspection 1.97 hours prior to the accident. The pilot opined that the accident could have been prevented if the spark plug had been tightened or properly torqued.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other American Champion (Acac) 7 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 Feb 2004 | American Champion (Acac) 7GCAA | Sebring, Florida, United States | John R. & Claire M. Lensis | No injuries | - |
| 22 Aug 2005 | American Champion (Acac) 7KCAB | Richland, Washington, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 23 Jul 2005 | American Champion (Acac) 7ECA | Hailey, Idaho, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 3 Jun 2003 | American Champion (Acac) 7GCAA | Frederick, Maryland, United States | Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association | No injuries | - |
| 5 Aug 2005 | American Champion (Acac) 7GCBC | Watertown, Wisconsin, United States | Wisconsin Aviation | No injuries | - |
| 10 Jun 2003 | American Champion (Acac) 7EC | Louisville, Kentucky, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 Mar 2004 | Globe GC-1B | Placerville, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 14 May 2004 | Downer BELLANCA 14-19-2 | Lancaster, California, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 15 May 2004 | Beechcraft A60 | Gualala, California, United States | Richard L. Probert | No injuries | - |
| 21 Mar 2004 | Alon A2 | Cameron Park, California, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 2 Sep 2004 | Cessna 172S | Willits, California, United States | Edward A. Warburton | Minor injuries | - |
| 20 Jan 2004 | Cessna 172P | Granada Hills, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |