# Accident 20050513023779A: Aronca 65TAC, Harrisonburg, VA, May 13, 2005

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 13, 2005, 11:30 local time
- Place: Harrisonburg, VA
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Low Level Operations
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 38.5294° N, 78.8867° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.5294&lon=-78.8867&mi=10
- Aircraft: N36973, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N36973-2008-02-26) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Aeronca 65-TAC (registry code 0190910, https://openairdocs.org/model/aeronca-65-tac) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental A&C65 series (registry code 17003, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-c65-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: ARONCA 65TAC
- Reported engine: CONT A658
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Pilot flight hours: 500 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB IAD05LA063](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD05LA063) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20050513023779A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) PILOT RENTED AIRCRAFT FROM VALLEY AVIATION IN WINCHESTER, VA FOR A 3-HOUR PERIOD. THE 45-YEAR OLD PILOT TOOK ALONG HIS 16 YEAR OLD SON ON AN APPARENT SIGHTSEEING FLIGHT TO THE HARRISONBURG, VA AREA. HE WAS OBSERVED TO BE FLYING AT A RELATIVELY LOW LEVEL ACROSS A RELATIVE'S FARM (CLOSE ENOUGH FOR THE RELATIVE TO RECOGNIZE THE OCCUPANTS' FACES). THERE WAS NO PRE-ARRANGMENT FOR ANY FLYING TO BE DONE OVER THAT FARM ACCORDING TO THE RELATIVE. AFTER A LEVEL PASS OVER THE FARM THE AIRCRAFT WAS OBSERVED TO TURN AROUND AND HEAD BACK TO THE FARM AT THE SAME ALTITUDE. SEVERAL WITNESSES REPORTED THAT THE AIRCRAFT THEN HAD AN INCREASE IN ENGINE SOUND, FOLLOWED BY A SPUTTERIN, THEN SILENCE. AT THIS TIME WITNESSES REPORTED THE AIRCRAFT TO DIVE STRAIGHT DOWN AT THE GROUND. THE IMPACT SITE WAS WITHIN 100 FEET OF THE RELATIVE'S FARMHOUSE. THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK WITH POWER OFF (PROPELLER STOPPED) IN A STALL-SPIN AND BOUND BACKWARDS FROM THE IMPACT POINT ABOUT 10 FEET. NO FIRE ENSUED. NO SMELL OF FUEL WAS EVIDENT DURING THE INITIAL RESPONSE OR THE SUBSEQUENT INVESTIGATION. THE MAGNETOS WERE ON, THE ELT HAD ACTIVATED, AND THE CARB HEAT KNOB WAS PINCHED IN THE OFF POSITION. A CLEAN FUEL SAMPLE WAS DRAINED FROM THE 10-GAL UPPER TANK.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB IAD05LA063](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD05LA063), May 13, 2005: Aeronca 65-TAC (N36973), Harrisonburg, VA, substantial damage, 2 fatal. Probable cause: A total loss of engine power for undetermined reasons, and the pilot's failure to maintain airspeed, which resulted in an inadvertent stall/spin and subsequent impact with the ground.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.