- Date
- April 30, 1985, 12:35 local (19:35 UTC)
- Place
- Fremont, CA
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N7713VAero Commander Callair A-9A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 24501
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 purpose of the local flight was to tow a glider aloft to a launch point. The pilot said he had no memory of the accident flight. Witnesses saw the aircraft make a go around form short final as a pedestrian walked across the runway approach end, and then extend a non-standard left downwind pattern to allow space for a glider on a right downwind to land. After the acft turned final, the witnesses saw the aircraft suddenly 'pitch 60 to 75 degrees nose down' and almost regained a level flight attitude at ground impact 2,300 feet from the runway. Tests of the airspeed indicator revealed that it read 13 mph fast at the acft's power off stall speed.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7713V
- Reported as
- Aero Commander Callair A-9A (CALLAIR A-)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1465
- Airframe hours
- 2,871
- Engine
- Lycoming O-540-B2B5, 235 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Other work use · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Bret Willat
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 25, 1985 · 13 hours before
- Departed
- 8Q7 · Fremont, CA
- Airport
- 8Q7 · Sky Sailing, runway 28, 1,840 × 30 ft, grass/turf
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
- 32
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 5,570 total · 500 in this make and model · 5,368 as pilot in command · 106 in the last 90 days · 17 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 340° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 70 °F, dew point 54 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SJC, 8 nm away