- Date
- April 26, 1991, 13:00 local (18:00 UTC)
- Place
- O'Neill, NE
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N4652EAeronca 7EC
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 31, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910426012749A
- Case key
- 15055
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 selection of unsuitable terrain for a precautionary landing. Factors were the pilot's disregarding the weather briefing and his intentional flight into adverse weather.
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 pilot performed a precautionary landing in a field during a cross country flight due to deteriorating weather conditions. The airplane contacted an irrigation ditch and was substantially damaged. The pilot received a preflight briefing in which VFR was not recommended.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4652E
- Reported as
- Aeronca 7EC
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 7EC-3
- Airframe hours
- 1,892
- Engine
- Continental C-90-12, 90 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Roger A. Ralston
- Registered owner
- Roger A. Ralston
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 14, 1990 · 16 hours before
- Departed
- GPZ · Grand Rapids, 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
- 43
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Single-engine sea
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 362 total · 298 in this make and model · 312 as pilot in command · 17 in the last 90 days · 10 in the last 30 days · 8 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 120° at 14 knots, gusting 22
- Lowest ceiling
- 200 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 57 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- OFK, 70 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.