Champion 7GCAA N9607S

Summary

On 13 August 2013 at about 18:30 local time, a Champion 7GCAA registered N9607S, operated by AA Aerial Surveillance, LLC., was involved in an accident near Paradise, California, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

13 August 2013 at 18:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Paradise, California, United States

Nearest airport

Chico Muni (CIC)

Coordinates

39.7011, -121.6733

Aircraft

Champion 7GCAA

Registration

N9607S

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

AA Aerial Surveillance, LLC.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Aerial Observation

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

NutTree Airport → Chico Municipal

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR13FA370

2 people died.

The pilot's failure to maintain airplane control during low-altitude maneuvering after encountering an updraft.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot and passenger were flying pipeline patrol to visually inspect conditions along a gas transmission line. The wreckage was found near the bottom of a canyon adjacent to the pipeline being patrolled. A camera mounted on the airplane's left forward wing strut captured video of the accident flight. The video of the flight showed that, moments before the accident, the airplane was flying above slowly rising terrain while paralleling the canyon on its right side. About 300 ft above ground level, the airplane appeared to encounter an updraft from the canyon, and, shortly after, it entered a right roll. The airplane continued rolling right and made three rotations. During the first rotation, the airplane's nose pitched down, and, during the second and third rotations, the airplane's nose maintained a constant descent angle before colliding with terrain. The video revealed that all of the flight controls were intact and that the engine was operating with power at the time of the accident. The video did not reveal any evidence of an airplane malfunction. Postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.