NTSB ERA26LA008 — 2025-10-07 · East Rockingham, North Carolina, United States

Current FAA registration · N63BC

Make / Model: CHAMPION 7ECA
Year of manufacture: 1968 · 57 years old at event
Engine: LYCOMING 0-235 SERIES (115 hp)
Seats / Engines: 2 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date: 19680926
ADS-B equipped: Yes — Mode-S A83B7F

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

N63BC Champion 7ECA None

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s failure to maintain control of the airplane during initial climb, resulting in an aerodynamic stall and impact with terrain.

Factual narrative

The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that he was attempting a normal landing with a left crosswind. About 200 ft into the landing roll, the right wing began to lift, and he overcorrected with left rudder input in an attempt to level the airplane. Fearing a ground loop, the pilot subsequently rejected the landing. During the initial climb, as the pilot attempted to clear trees at the end of the runway, the airplane experienced an aerodynamic stall, resulting in impact with terrain. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings and the fuselage. The pilot also reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

— Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot
— Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Angle of attack-Capability exceeded

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2025_ERA26LA008.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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Related research

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