NTSB ERA12CA245 — 2012-03-20 · Clearwater, Florida, United States

Current FAA registration · N82406

Make / Model: AERONCA 7AC
Year of manufacture: 1946 · 66 years old at event
Engine: CONT MOTOR A&C65 SERIES (65 hp)
Seats / Engines: 2 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date: 19570523
ADS-B equipped: Yes — Mode-S AB422E

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

N82406 Aeronca 7AC None

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to maintain airplane control during takeoff and the flight instructor's inadequate supervision, which resulted in a runway excursion.

Factual narrative

The commercial pilot was receiving instruction in the tailwheel equipped airplane, from a certified flight instructor (CFI), and began the takeoff roll from runway 16, without incident. The commercial pilot stated that as he lifted the tailwheel off the runway, the airplane encountered a wind gust, veered to the left, and that he had "little to no" control of the airplane. The CFI assumed control of the airplane; however, it subsequently departed the left side of the runway and struck a fence. The airplane's main landing gear separated and the airframe was substantially damaged. Both pilots reported that they did not experience any mechanical malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The commercial pilot reported 1,530 hours of total flight experience, which included 2 hours in the same make and model as the accident airplane. Winds reported an airport located about 5 miles southeast of the accident site, around the time of the accident, were from 120 degrees at 9 knots. The commercial pilot said that he was receiving flight instruction in the tailwheel-equipped airplane and that as he lifted the tailwheel off runway for takeoff, the airplane encountered a wind gust and veered to the left. The pilot said that he had "little to no" control of the airplane. The flight instructor then assumed control of the airplane; however, the airplane departed the left side of the runway and struck a fence. The airplane's main landing gear separated and the airframe was substantially damaged. Both pilots reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot receiving instruction reported 1,530 hours of total flight experience, which included 2 hours in the same make and model as the accident airplane. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Task monitoring/vigilance-Instructor/check pilot - C
C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2012_ERA12CA245.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Search this event elsewhere

External sources are reported, not agency: signal that something happened, not fact about what happened.

Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (runway excursion). All research papers