Bellanca 7ECA accident near Pontiac, MI
On January 27, 2006, a Bellanca 7ECA (airplane) was involved in an accident near Pontiac, MI. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- January 27, 2006
- Place
- Pontiac, MI
- Aircraft
- Bellanca 7ECA · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 42.666°N, 83.420°W
- NTSB ID
- 20060203X00159
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On January 27, 2006, about 0926 eastern standard time, a Bellanca Citabria, model 7ECA, N55CW, piloted by a commercial pilot and a certified flight instructor (CFI), was destroyed when it impacted terrain while maneuvering for landing at the Oakland County International Airport (PTK), near Pontiac, Michigan. The 14 CFR Part 91 instructional flight was operating in visual meteorological conditions without a flight plan. Both occupants of the airplane received fatal injuries. The local flight originated at 0817. Witnesses reported seeing the airplane in a steep bank turn before it descended and impacted the ground. A witness reported seeing the airplane flying in the traffic pattern prior to the accident. He reported that he was in another airplane positioned at the approach end of runway 9R, conducting a maintenance run-up when he witnessed the accident airplane. He said that he saw the accident airplane performing touch and go landings on runway 27L. He stated that he saw the airplane performing steep bank turns that were "not normal" within the traffic pattern. The witness further stated that he saw the airplane in the dive prior to impact. He stated that the airplane was in a dive and struck the ground in a nose low and left wing low attitude. Another witness told local authorities that he saw the airplane heading south when it made a "hard left bank then fell out of [the] sky." The air traffic control specialist that was working in the control tower at the time of the accident reported that the accident airplane was in the traffic pattern for runway 27L
Probable cause
The excessive bank angle executed by the flight crew and their failure to maintain airspeed during the turn, which led to the inadvertent stall and subsequent impact with the ground. A factor was the low altitude.
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Browse: Michigan · Bellanca aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
