# Incident 20150722013909I: American Champion Aircraft 8KCAB, Willow, AK, July 22, 2015

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 22, 2015, 14:30 local time
- Place: Willow, AK
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Landing: Approach
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 61.7472° N, 150.0375° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Willow, AK, within about 15 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=61.7472&lon=-150.0375&mi=10
- Aircraft: N775AC, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N775AC) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: American Champion 8KCAB (registry code 2121000, https://openairdocs.org/model/american-champion-8kcab) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming AEIO-360 series (registry code 41522, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-aeio-360-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AMERICAN CHAMPION AIRCRAFT 8KCAB
- Reported engine: LYCOMING AEIO-360 SER
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Airline transport, flight instructor
- Pilot flight hours: 14,898 total, 266 in this make and model, 45 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20150722013909I

## Narrative

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

FULL TRIM ON THE CITABRIA AIRCRAFT CAN BE ACTIVATED VERY QUICKLY, ALMOST INSTANTLY.  THE PIC/CFI AND STUDENT WERE FLYING A SIMULATED "ELEVATOR OUT" APPROACH WHICH IS PART OF U.S. FOREST SERVICE PILOT TRAINING.  THE STUDENT HAD FLOWN THIS APPROACH THE DAY PRIOR BUT WAS "A LITTLE ROUGH".

THE STUDENT WAS FLYING THE AIRCRAFT WITH NO STICK INPUTS,  ESSENTIALLY USING THROTTLE AND TRIM ONLY FOR PITCH.

AT ABOUT 50' ABOVE GROUND LEVEL THE PIC CALLED FOR THE INTENDED GO-AROUND, BUT THE STUDENT BECAME CONFUSED AND VERY QUICKLY ADDED FULL "NOSE DOWN" TRIM INSTEAD OF THE "NOSE UP TRIM" THE SITUATION CALLED FOR.

THE TRIM TOOK EFFECT SO QUICKLY THAT THE AIRCRAFT NOSED OVER INTO THE GROUND BEFORE THE PIC COULD DO ANYTHING TO PREVENT IT.  THE PIC STATED "THERE WASN'T ANYTHING I COULD DO".

## Other reports on N775AC (1)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Incident 19980903035699I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980903035699I), Sep 3, 1998: Bbavia 8KCAB (N775AC), Dayton, OH, Minor damage. (-5) On September 3, 1998, at 1830 EDT, an American champion 8KCAB, N775AC, lost control and did a ground loop upon landing at Moraine airport, Ohio (I73)…

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.