Champion 8GCBC N424A

Summary

On 4 August 2018 at about 15:00 local time, a Champion 8GCBC registered N424A, operated by Gcaa, LLC, was involved in an accident near Foley, Alabama, 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

4 August 2018 at 15:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Foley, Alabama, United States

Nearest airport

Irwin Farms (PVT)

Coordinates

30.3742, -87.7264

Aircraft

Champion 8GCBC

Registration

N424A

Category

Airplane

Year built

2012

Engines

1

Operator

Gcaa, LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Banner Tow

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Foley → Foley

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA18FA208

2 people died.

The pilot's exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack, which resulted in a subsequent aerodynamic stall and spin at an altitude that was too low for recovery.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot was conducting a banner-tow flight with a pilot-rated passenger. A witness (a ground crewmember) stated that, after takeoff, the approach and pickup of the banner appeared normal and that the engine sounded strong. According to the ground crewmember, the pilot successfully hooked the banner with the airplane tow cable and initiated a steep climbout with the banner in tow. The trailing edge of the banner had just come off the ground when the airplane reached an altitude of about 300 ft above ground level. At that point, the right wing dropped. The pilot attempted to maintain directional control by releasing the banner and applying left rudder; however, the airplane entered a right descending spin to the ground. Postaccident examination revealed no malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane or engine. It is likely that after the banner pickup and during initial climb, while the airplane had a high power setting, high pitch angle, and low airspeed, the airplane exceeded the critical angle of attack and entered an aerodynamic stall and spin from which recovery was not possible due to the airplane's altitude at the time. Even though the weight and balance were within limits for the accident flight, it is possible the presence of the back seat passenger reduced the airplane's performance, and that the pilot did not account for the effect of the back seat passenger on the performance of the airplane during the pickup maneuver.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.