Aeronca 7AC N1937E

Summary

On 31 March 1995 at about 18:30 local time, a Aeronca 7AC registered N1937E was involved in an accident near El Cajon, California, United States. 2 people were on board and one was seriously injured, one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

31 March 1995 at 18:30

Classification

Accident

Location

El Cajon, California, United States

Coordinates

32.8393, -116.8804

Aircraft

Aeronca 7AC

Registration

N1937E

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX95LA150

1 person was seriously injured.

a loss of engine power due to an in-flight separation of the fuel system gascolator glass bowl resulting in a premature fuel exhaustion. The rough/uneven terrain is a factor in this accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

THE PILOT WAS CONDUCTING A LOCAL VFR FLIGHT AND THE PILOT EXECUTED AN EMERGENCY LANDING ON A ROUGH/UNEVEN FIELD FOLLOWING A TOTAL LOSS OF POWER. RESPONDING FIRE DEPARTMENT PERSONNEL AND FAA INSPECTORS DID NOT FIND ANY FUEL IN THE AIRCRAFT FUEL TANKS OR ON THE GROUND. THE AIRCRAFT WAS EQUIPPED WITH AN ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT GLASS GASCOLATOR BOWL. THE FUEL SYSTEM GASCOLATOR BOWL WAS NOT FOUND IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT OR ON THE GROUND ANYWHERE AT THE ACCIDENT SITE. INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE MANUFACTURER RECOMMENDED REPLACEMENT OF THE GLASS GASCOLATOR BOWL WITH A METAL BOWL IN A SERVICE LETTER ISSUED IN 1946. THE ACTION WAS TAKEN DUE TO INCIDENCE OF THE GLASS BOWLS BREAKING IN FLIGHT. THE GLASS BOWL REPLACEMENT WAS NOT A SUBJECT OF ANY AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES ON THE ACCIDENT AIRPLANE MAKE OR MODEL.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.