- Date
- October 28, 1989, 17:00 local (21:00 UTC)
- Place
- Friendsville, PA
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N4428EAeronca 7AC
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 23, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19891028043539A
- Case key
- 36580
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 failed to maintain airspeed and stalled the aircraft.
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 aeronica 7AC departed a private airstrip and settled into trees. The pilot reported that a passenger was holding a sack of corn and it slipped down and jammed the flight controls, preventing him from clearing the trees. The FAA reported that the aircraft struck the trees with slow forward airspeed and high angle of attack. They described it as a 'stall' type of accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4428E
- Reported as
- Aeronca 7AC
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 7AC-7189
- Airframe hours
- 4,759
- Engine
- Continental A-65-8, 65 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- John V. Kunte
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 3, 1988 · 80 hours before
- Departed
- Friendsville, PA
- Destination
- Endicott, NY
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
- 58
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 800 total · 688 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Temperature
- 61 °F, dew point -0 °F
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 N4428E · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.