Champion 7HC N8556E

Summary

On 16 August 2015 at about 02:30 local time, a Champion 7HC registered N8556E was involved in an accident near Coldfoot, Alaska, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

16 August 2015 at 02:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Coldfoot, Alaska, United States

Coordinates

67.9769, -149.7525

Aircraft

Champion 7HC

Registration

N8556E

Category

Airplane

Year built

1959

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Coldfoot → Galbraith Lake

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC15CA064

Nobody was injured.

The loss of engine power due to carburetor icing and the pilot's failure to recognize conditions favorable for carburetor icing and apply use of carburetor heat.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was climbing to cross a remote mountain pass when the airplane's engine lost partial power. The pilot turned the airplane to the left and the engine lost total power and started descending very quickly. The pilot attempted to make a forced landing to a road, but did not make it and landed the airplane in an area of rocks and a ditch. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the wings and fuselage, and a postaccident fire then destroyed the airplane. Plotting temperature and dew point on a carburetor icing probability chart placed the conditions noted at the time of the accident as being probable for serious carburetor icing in cruise or climb power. The pilot stated that he did not use carburetor heat either during the climb, or after the engine lost power.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.