Aviation Crash Map

Champion 7AC N1369E

18 March 2025 · Palmetto, Florida, United States · Serious injuries

Summary

On 18 March 2025 at about 14:46 local time, a Champion 7AC registered N1369E was involved in an accident near Palmetto, Florida, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

The record

Date
at 14:46
Classification
Accident
Location
Palmetto, Florida, United States
Nearest airport
Manatee (48X)
Coordinates
27.6426, -82.5224
Aircraft
Champion 7AC
Registration
N1369E
Category
Airplane
Engines
1
Operator
Not recorded
Operating rule
Part 91: General Aviation
Purpose of flight
Instructional
Phase of flight
Not recorded
Aircraft damage
Substantial
Weather
VMC
Light
Day
NTSB number
ERA25LA147

People

2 people were seriously injured.

On board Died Serious Minor Uninjured
2 0 2 0 0

Probable cause

The flight instructor’s inability to overpower control inputs made by the student pilot during initial climb, which resulted in the airplane impacting powerlines and the ground.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The instructional flight was the student pilot’s second ever flight. The flight instructor reported that he was flying the airplane for the takeoff and initial climb. During the departure, the “nervous” student pilot grabbed the control stick and applied full left aileron input. The flight instructor tried to regain control of the airplane but was unsuccessful. The airplane subsequently struck power lines at a height of about 25 ft above ground level before impacting the ground. The flight instructor and the student were seriously injured and both of the airplane’s wings, the fuselage, and the empennage were substantially damaged during the accident. A postaccident examination of the airplane’s flight controls revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation, nor did the flight instructor report any.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.

Other Champion 7 accidents

Date Aircraft Location Operator Outcome Died
1 Oct 2025 Champion 7GC
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Haskell, Oklahoma, United States - Minor injuries -
7 Oct 2025 Champion 7ECA
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31 Aug 2025 Champion 7GCBC
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2 Sep 2025 Champion 7FC
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31 Jul 2025 Champion 7FC
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Moriarty, New Mexico, United States - No injuries -
26 Apr 2025 Champion 7GCBC
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Weyers Cave, Virginia, United States - No injuries -

All 1,471 records for this type

Other accidents in this area

Date Aircraft Location Operator Outcome Died
1 Jan 2025 Beechcraft A36
N8163F
Naples, Florida, United States - No injuries -
26 Nov 2025 Huebbe Tom MAX TH
N48TH
Inverness Highlands South, Florida, United States - No injuries -
28 Nov 2025 CubCrafters CARBON CUB FX2
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Okeechobee, Florida, United States - No injuries -
10 Jul 2025 Piper PA34
N1293T
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States ATA Flight School No injuries -
11 Jul 2025 Cessna 150
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St. Augustine, Florida, United States - No injuries -
14 Jul 2025 Cessna T337G
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All 170,864 records in United States