Aeronca 11AC N3503E

Summary

On 28 April 2013 at about 16:34 local time, a Aeronca 11AC registered N3503E was involved in an accident near Hoosick Falls, New York, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

28 April 2013 at 16:34

Classification

Accident

Location

Hoosick Falls, New York, United States

Coordinates

42.8906, -73.3361

Aircraft

Aeronca 11AC

Registration

N3503E

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Cambidge → Cambidge

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA13LA221

1 person was seriously injured.

The failure of the left wing attachment bracket weld due to inadequate welding by unknown maintenance personnel.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

One witness reported observing the airplane "flying sideways" and another witness reported observing the airplane operating "in a large circular motion…losing altitude." The airplane subsequently impacted the ground in a nose-down attitude. Examination of the airplane revealed that the left wing was separated from its aft wing attachment bracket. Further examination of both wings' aft attachment brackets revealed that the welds had not fully penetrated into the base material and that they were of poor workmanship. No maintenance records were found indicating that the brackets had ever been replaced or welded; therefore, it could not be determined when or by whom the welds were made. Due to their location on the attachment brackets, the pilot would not have been able to detect that the welds were inadequate during his visual inspection of the airplane. Based on the evidence, it is likely that the left wing attachment bracket weld failed in flight, which resulted in the pilot being unable to maintain airplane control due to the wing's trailing edge being unattached. Although both wings' aft attachment brackets exhibited evidence of overstress fractures, these likely occurred during ground impact.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.