# NTSB LAX02LA058: Aeronca 7AC, N83136, Winters, CA, December 26, 2001 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: December 26, 2001, 15:10 local (23:10 UTC) - Place: Winters, CA - Coordinates: 38.55997, -121.989547 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.5600&lon=-121.9895&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Standing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/150) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report November 25, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA Flt Stnds Dist Office - NTSB case key (mKey): 53960 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX02LA058 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/53960/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA058 ## Probable cause The failure of the pilot to retard the engine throttle to idle while hand-propping the engine, which resulted in the engine starting at full (takeoff) power and the airplane taking off with no one aboard. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Miscellaneous/other, standing - starting engine(s) - starting procedure - improper, pilot in command (cause) - throttle/power control - not set, pilot in command (cause) - Loss of control - on ground/water, standing - starting engine(s) - In flight collision with terrain/water, descent - terrain condition - mountainous/hilly ## Analysis The pilot "propped" (hand started) the engine and the airplane subsequently took off with no one aboard and crashed in nearby mountains about 2 hours later. The aircraft was not equipped with an electric starter motor and the pilot normally and routinely started it by hand-propping. The pilot (who was alone) stood behind the propeller when pulling on it. He reported that, after propping the engine about 4 times without achieving engine start, he perceived the engine was flooded and returned to the cockpit where he turned the magneto switch from "both" to "off" and advanced the throttle to the full throttle position. He then turned the engine backwards 10 revolutions. He next returned to the cockpit again and turned the magneto switch back to the "both" position; however, he forgot to retard the throttle back to the idle position. When he next propped the engine it started at maximum power. The pilot attempted to restrain the airplane but was unable to do so and the airplane moved forward and took off with no one aboard. The airplane was located the following morning about 45 miles northeast of the departure point, having crashed in mountainous terrain. ## Factual narrative On December 26, 2001, about 1510 Pacific standard time, an Aeronca 7AC, N83136, impacted mountainous terrain near Winters, California. The unoccupied airplane was destroyed, and there were no injuries. The airplane took off with no one aboard when the private pilot started the engine from outside the airplane by pulling the propeller. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal flight operated by the owner under 14 CFR Part 91. The airplane departed from a private airstrip near Petaluma, California, at 1545, and the pilot's intent was to land at Gnoss Field at Novato, California. No flight plan was filed. According to a spokesman for the owner/pilot, the aircraft was not equipped with an electric starter motor and the pilot normally and routinely started it by "propping" (pulling the propeller by hand). The pilot (who was alone) stood behind the propeller when pulling on it. The pilot reported that, after "propping" the engine about 4 times without achieving engine start, he perceived the engine was "flooded" and returned to the cockpit where he turned the magneto switch "off" and advanced the throttle to the full throttle position. He then turned the engine backwards 10 revolutions. He next returned to the cockpit again and turned the magneto switch back to the "both" position; however, he forgot to retard the throttle back to the idle position. When he next "propped" the engine it started at maximum power. The pilot attempted to restrain the airplane but was unable to do so and the airplane moved forward and took off with no one aboard. The airplane was located the following morning about 45 miles northeast of the departure point, having crashed in mountainous terrain near Lake Berryessa. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N83136](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N83136-2004-01-28), registration cancelled 2004-01-28, S/N 7AC-1797, built 1946 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Aeronca 7AC - Registry model: [Aeronca 7AC](https://openairdocs.org/model/aeronca-7ac) (registry code 2110102) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental A&C65 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-c65-series) (registry code 17003, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 1797 - Engines: Continental A-65-8 65 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Destroyed - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Paul D. Clary, III - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, November 29, 2001, 5 hours before - Departed: Petaluma, CA - Destination: DVO, Novato, CA ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 67; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review June 28, 2000; flight hours: 1,712 total, 330 in this make and model, 1,658 as pilot in command, 2 in the last 90 days, 2 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: calm - Visibility: 6 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 2,000 ft broken - Temperature: 50 °F, dew point 48 °F - Altimeter: 30.07 inHg - Observed at: STS, 18 nm away 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.