20241225022459A

Aeronca sedan had taken off around 3:50 pm and flew direct to a local lake and back to achieve an hour of flight time. The aircraft began with about 16 gallons of fuel and arrived back to home base around one hour later. The pilot in command noticed on takeoff that the sun was extremely bright, but by heading east it wasn't a factor. Everything seemed satisfactory up to this point, but landing at around 4:45 pm put the full effect of the sun directly in his eyes. Wearing sunglasses, the blinding sun did not allow the recognition of needed landmarks at this pivotal moment. On approach, he prepared to close the throttle and land. Realizing where he was over the field, the only option was to advance the throttle, pull the control yoke full aft, and turn the aileron and rudder hard to the left. This action allowed him to miss some trees but not enough to clear the cedar trees which he hit. The airplane came to a stop on airport property and was destroyed. The pilot was able to exit the wreckage, where he was picked up by a neighbor and transported to a local hospital. Local residents quickly gathered at the crash site, as emergency services had been dispatched. Around six minutes later, an area sheriff deputy was the first responder on scene. He proceeded to tape off the area and gathered witness statements for his report. Meanwhile a resident whom is a current FAA employee contacted the regional operations center informing them of the aircraft accident. FAA iic, NTSB and regional operations center completed conference call discussing all details and to devise a plan moving forward. Due to the nature of the accident, time frame and location of the aircraft, a decision was made to visit the accident site the following morning.

December 26,2024. FAA iic on location of the aircraft accident site to gather photographs, eyewitness statements and to analyze root causes of the crash.