Champion 7GCBC N5502S

Summary

On 7 September 2019 at about 20:40 local time, a Champion 7GCBC registered N5502S was involved in an accident near Carpenter, Wyoming, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

7 September 2019 at 20:40

Classification

Accident

Location

Carpenter, Wyoming, United States

Coordinates

41.0300, -104.2464

Aircraft

Champion 7GCBC

Registration

N5502S

Category

Airplane

Year built

1978

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Carpenter → Fort Morgan

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN19FA305

1 person died.

The pilot’s exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack during the initial climb after takeoff, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and loss of control at an altitude too low for recovery.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot departed from a field and was climbing the airplane through about 100 to 200 ft above ground level. Witnesses stated, and surveillance video of the accident confirmed, that the airplane entered a left bank that increased to about 60° degrees as the airplane turned about 180°. The left bank continued to increase until the airplane entered a nose-down descent into the ground, consistent with an aerodynamic stall. Both witnesses reported that the engine was operating throughout. Examination of the airplane and engine revealed no mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Based on the available information, it is likely that the pilot exceeded the airplane’s critical angle of attack while turning during the initial climb, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and loss of control at an altitude too low for recovery.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.