- Date
- February 13, 2004, 14:00 local (20:00 UTC)
- Place
- Sunburg, MN
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N186ACAmerican Champion 8GCBC
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 1, 2004
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration - Minneapolis FSDO
- FAA report
- 20040213003489A
- Case key
- 58804
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's improper in-flight decision to land off-airport. A factor to the accident was the snow covered ditch.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The airplane sustained substantial damage when it impacted a ditch and subsequently nosed over while landing on a gravel road. The pilot stated the purpose of the flight was to take aerial photographs of several Minnesota farms. The pilot reported that while in cruise flight he had the "sudden urge to use the bathroom" and he selected a nearby gravel road to land on. The pilot stated that during landing rollout he noticed a sign on the left side of the road. While he attempted to maneuver the airplane to avoid striking the sign, the right wheel "got sucked into the ditch which was full of snow." The airplane subsequently impacted the ditch and nosed over. The airplane was configured with extended range fuel system that increased the airplane's maximum endurance to approximately 7 hours. The accident flight was reported to be approximately 5 1/2 hours in duration.
Factual narrative
On February 13, 2004, at 1400 central standard time, an American Champion Aircraft 8GCBC, N186AC, piloted by a commercial pilot, sustained substantial damage when it impacted a ditch and subsequently nosed over while landing on a gravel road near Sunburg, Minnesota. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The flight was operating under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91 without a flight plan. The pilot was not injured. The flight departed at 0830 from a private airstrip near Castlewood, South Dakota.
The pilot stated the purpose of the flight was to take aerial photographs of several Minnesota farms. The pilot reported that while in cruise flight he had the "sudden urge to use the bathroom" and he selected a nearby gravel road to land on. The pilot stated that during landing rollout he noticed a sign on the left side of the road. While he attempted to maneuver the airplane to avoid striking the sign, the right wheel "got sucked into the ditch which was full of snow." The airplane subsequently impacted the ditch and nosed over. The airplane was configured with extended range fuel system that increased the airplane's maximum endurance to approximately 7 hours. The accident flight was reported to be approximately 5 1/2 hours in duration.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N186AC
- Reported as
- American Champion 8GCBC
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 369-94
- Airframe hours
- 3,660
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-C1E, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 12, 2003 · 20 hours before
- Departed
- PVT · Castlewood, SD
- Destination
- Sunburg, MN
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 34
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Last flight review
- February 2, 2004
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 10,043 total · 9,500 in this make and model · 9,957 as pilot in command · 20 in the last 90 days · 11 in the last 30 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 270° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 30 °F, dew point 19 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.79 inHg
- Observed at
- ILL, 15 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N186AC · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.