- Date
- December 22, 2007, 17:55 local (Dec 23, 2007, 00:55 UTC)
- Place
- Gallup, NM
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N8305VChampion 7GCAA
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Status
- Completed · report February 28, 2008
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA Flight Stanards District Office
- FAA report
- 20071223830569A
- Case key
- 67293
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 premature landing flare and an inadvertent stall/mush. A contributing factor is pilot's lack of recent night experience.
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
According to the pilot, during the night landing he flared too high, the airplane stalled, and impacted the runway with the nose canted to the right. He said that he added power in attempt to straighten the airplane, but the airplane departed the runway to the right, traveled through a ditch and nosed over, resulting in substantial damage. The pilot reported no anomalies with the airplane systems. He stated he was not night current, and did not hold a valid medical certificate.
Factual narrative
According to a telephone conversation with the pilot, during the night landing to runway 06 (7,316 feet by 100 feet, asphalt) he flared too high and the airplane "stalled." The airplane impacted the runway with the nose "canted to the right." The pilot reported that he added power in attempt to straighten the airplane. The airplane departed the runway to the right. The airplane traveled through a ditch and nosed over. Both wings were bent down and aft, the firewall wrinkled, and the vertical stabilizer crushed down. The pilot reported no anomalies with the airplane systems. The pilot reported he was not night current and did not hold a valid medical certificate. Despite several requests, the pilot did not complete and submit an Aircraft Accident Investigation Report Form 6120.1.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8305V
- Reported as
- Champion 7GCAA
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 98
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal; Special, Restricted (Special)
- Departed
- CDC · Cedar City, UT
- Destination
- GUP · Gallup, NM
- Airport
- GUP · Gallup Municipal, runway 6, 7,316 × 100 ft, asphalt
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
- 68
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Flight hours
- 5 total · 5 in this make and model · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Wind
- 230° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 25 °F, dew point 12 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.30 inHg
- Observed at
- KGUP, 1 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 N8305V · 3
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.