Bellanca 7GCBC accident near Fairbanks, Alaska, February 16, 2001
On February 16, 2001 at about 7:00 pm local time, a Bellanca 7GCBC, registered N36266, was substantially damaged in an accident near Fairbanks, Alaska. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight instructor's inadequate supervision of the flight during the landing flare. A factor in the accident was the student's abrupt airplane control.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 16, 2001 · about 7:00 pm local time
- Place
- Fairbanks, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bellanca 7GCBC · all 7GCBCs on the register
- Registration
- N36266 · registry record · serial 560-73
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The commercial certificated pilot/flight instructor, and the student pilot, were conducting touch and go landings in a ski-equipped airplane during the student's first flight. The flight instructor demonstrated a variety of aerial maneuvers, and then landed on a frozen lake. The lake was covered with about two feet of snow. The instructor performed two additional takeoff and landings and then stopped. He placed the student pilot in the front seat and got into the rear seat. The instructor had the student taxi the airplane and then perform several takeoff and landings. The flight instructor then took over the flight controls and landed at a different lake, establishing a new set of ski landing tracks in the snow. The student pilot then performed two additional takeoff and landings. On the third landing approach to the new location, the airplane was established on a normal glide path. About 2 to 4 feet above the ground, the student suddenly pushed forward on the control stick and applied almost full right rudder. The instructor was unable to prevent the airplane from colliding with the snow in a nose down attitude. The airplane nosed over and received damage to the wings, wing spars, lift struts, and vertical stabilizer.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,020 hours in all; 30 in this make and model; 58 in the last 90 days; 35 in the last 30 days; 6,000 as pilot in command; 460 on instruments
- Last flight review: August 27, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,648 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 10, 2001; 2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,650 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PAFA Fairbanks AK at 6:00 pm
- Flight plan: VFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 19°F (-7°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.