# NTSB CHI03LA167: Ercoupe 415-C, N94327, Atwood, IL, June 18, 2003 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: June 18, 2003, 11:20 local (16:20 UTC) - Place: Atwood, IL - Coordinates: 39.855556, -88.461112 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.8556&lon=-88.4611&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report December 30, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA-Springfield FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 57260 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CHI03LA167 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/57260/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI03LA167 ## Probable cause The pilot's selection of an unsuitable landing area and his improper decision to continue the approach without the airport and runway clearly in-sight. Factors contributing to the accident were the pilot's disorientation, the transmission wires, and the road sign. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - On ground/water collision with object, landing - became lost/disoriented, pilot in command (cause) - unsuitable terrain or takeoff/landing/taxi area - selected, pilot in command (cause) - object - wire,transmission (contributing factor) - object - sign (contributing factor) - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, landing - terrain condition - crop ## Analysis The airplane was substantially damaged when it impacted wires and a roadway sign during an off airport landing. The pilot reported he was flying into an unfamiliar airport and lost sight of the runway while in the traffic pattern. The pilot stated he confused a road for the airstrip and struck the wires and a road sign while landing. The pilot indicated the airplane "spun" about 300 feet into a cornfield before coming to a stop. ## Factual narrative On June 18, 2003, at 1120 central daylight time, a Ercoupe 415-C, N94327, owned and operated by a private pilot, sustained substantial damage when it impacted wires during an off airport landing near Atwood, Illinois. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The pilot reported no injuries. The 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight was not operating on a flight plan. The flight departed from Coles County Memorial Airport, Mattoon, Illinois, at 1045, with an intended destination of Cooch Landing Area Airport (IL31), Atwood, Illinois. The pilot reported he was following a group of other aircraft into IL31. He stated he had never flown into IL31 before and was unfamiliar with the area. The pilot noted, "I lost sight of the aircraft ahead of me on the downwind leg and never saw the airstrip. I extended my downwind leg to give the other plane time to land. On my final [approach] leg I still did not see the [airport]. ... Ahead I saw what I thought was the airstrip going at an angle from the road." The pilot stated he saw the power poles but "was told the wires were underground at the field." The pilot noted the airplane struck the wires during approach. The left wing subsequently hit a road sign, causing the airplane to spin into a cornfield. It came to a stop about 300 feet from the road. The pilot reported he was "convinced [the road] was the airstrip [he] was headed for." The pilot reported there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures during the accident flight. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N94327](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N94327), registered now, S/N 1550, built 1946 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Ercoupe (Eng & Research Corp.) 415-C - Registry model: [Engineering & Research ERCOUPE 415-C](https://openairdocs.org/model/engineering-research-ercoupe-415-c) (registry code 0420312) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental A&C75 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-c75-series) (registry code 17005, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 1550 - Airframe hours: 2115 - Engines: Continental C-75 75 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, September 24, 2002, 10 hours before - Departed: MTO, Mattoon, IL - Destination: IL31, Atwood, IL ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 75; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; last flight review June 19, 2002; seat: left; flight hours: 500 total ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 270° at 3 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 79 °F, dew point 61 °F - Altimeter: 29.95 inHg - Observed at: CMI, 15 nm away ## Other investigations on N94327 (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 CHI68F0409](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI68F0409), Nov 18, 1967: Erco 415-C (N94327), Plymouth, MI, substantial damage 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. --- 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.