- Date
- April 17, 2026, 11:30 local (18:30 UTC)
- Place
- Bend, OR
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N7541BAeronca 7FC
- Defining event
- Landing-landing roll: Nose over/nose down
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 25, 2026
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20260417003319A
- Case key
- 202857
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 failure to maintain directional control during landing roll. Contributing to the accident was the rotor wash from a nearby helicopter.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot of the tailwheel equipped airplane reported that during the landing roll, the airplane veered to the left and exited the runway. The pilot applied right rudder input and increased engine power to raise the tail as he maneuvered the airplane toward the runway surface. As the airplane rolled onto the runway surface, it veered to the right, exited the runway, and continued onto the parallel taxiway. The pilot firmly applied both brakes to avoid a fuel island and the airplane subsequently nosed over, which resulted in substantial damage to both wings and rudder. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. At the time of the accident, the pilot was landing on runway 16, with light and variable wind. The pilot reported that there was a helicopter to the left of the runway on a parallel taxiway and felt that its rotor wash was a factor in the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7541B
- Reported as
- Aeronca 7FC
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 7FC-44
- Built
- 1957
- Airframe hours
- 4,086
- Engine
- Continental C90-12F, 90 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 1, 2026 · 15 hours before
- Departed
- S33 · Madras, OR
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- BDN · Bend Municipal Airport, runway 16, 5,201 × 75 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
- 70
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- BasicMed, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- March 12, 2025
- Seat
- Front
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 1,943 total · 49 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 50 °F, dew point 16 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.19 inHg
- Observed at
- KBDN
- METAR
- METAR KBDN 171835Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 10/M09 A3019 RMK AO2
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 25, 2026, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.0 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.