20161029017259I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · American Champion 7GCAA · Odessa, TX · October 29, 2016

Date: October 29, 2016 · 08:50 local
Place: Odessa, TX
Phase of flight: Other, Specify
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Minor damage
Aircraft: N631AC
Reported as: American Champion 7GCAA
Reported engine: Lycoming 0-320 series
People aboard: 2
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Commercial pilot
Pilot’s flight hours: 1,651 total263 in this make and model250 in the last 90 days

N631ACRegistered now · American Champion 7GCAAS/N 450-2000 · Built 2000 Airframe modelAmerican Champion 7GCAA Engine modelLycoming 0-320 seriesReciprocating

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

Pilot was making a flat, low pass in an oil collection field. He was flying south into the wind keeping his target on the left side. There was a high thin overcast so the sun was not beaming into him, but he was wearing sunglasses. The wire was on the left side, but with the sun behind it he could not see it. The propeller cut the wire which broke the windshield and slid off the left wing. The pilot made an immediate precautionary landing on a dirt road within the oil collection field.

As the FAA filed it

PILOT WAS MAKING A FLAT, LOW PASS IN AN OIL COLLECTION FIELD. HE WAS FLYING SOUTH INTO THE WIND KEEPING HIS TARGET ON THE LEFT SIDE. THERE WAS A HIGH THIN OVERCAST SO THE SUN WAS NOT BEAMING INTO HIM, BUT HE WAS WEARING SUNGLASSES. THE WIRE WAS ON THE LEFT SIDE, BUT WITH THE SUN BEHIND IT HE COULD NOT SEE IT. THE PROPELLER CUT THE WIRE WHICH BROKE THE WINDSHIELD AND SLID OFF THE LEFT WING. THE PILOT MADE AN IMMEDIATE PRECAUTIONARY LANDING ON A DIRT ROAD WITHIN THE OIL COLLECTION FIELD.