Champion 7GCA accident near Collinsville, Mississippi, April 20, 1985
On April 20, 1985 at about 10:00 pm local time, a Champion 7GCA, registered N9636S, was destroyed in an accident near Collinsville, Mississippi. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 20, 1985 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Collinsville, Mississippi · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Champion 7GCA · all 7GCAs on the register
- Registration
- N9636S · no longer on the register · serial 59
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WITNESSES, FRIENDS OF THE PLT, REPORTED SEEING THE ACFT ENGAGED IN AEROBATICS AT ALTITUDES BETWEEN 500 FT AGL AND 2000 FT AGL, APRX 1/4 MILE FROM THEIR OUTDOOR SOCIAL FUNCTION. THEY CONTINUED TO REPORT, THE ACFT ENTERED A SPIN AND AFTER APRX 2 3/4 REVOLUTIONS IT DISAPPEARED BEHIND TREES. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, THE GROUND IMPACT WAS HEARD.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,200 hours in all; 500 in this make and model; 42 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,231 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 20, 1984; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-B2B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MEI Meridian MS at 9:10 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 120° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds; scat
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:52 pm from MEI, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
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.