Bellanca 7KCAB accident near Berlin, Maryland, May 29, 1986
On May 29, 1986 at about 6:05 pm local time, a Bellanca 7KCAB, registered N12AP, was substantially damaged in an accident near Berlin, Maryland (Bunting Airstrip airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. 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
- May 29, 1986 · about 6:05 pm local time
- Place
- Berlin, Maryland · Bunting Airstrip · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bellanca 7KCAB · all 7KCABs on the register
- Registration
- N12AP · no longer on the register · serial 447-74
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE CLIMBING OUT AFTER PICKING UP AN ADVERTISING BANNER THE PILOT OF THE BELLANCA 7KCAB NOTICED THAT THE AIRCRAFT YAWED EXCESSIVELY TO THE RIGHT. AFTER VERIFYING THAT THE ENGINE WAS AT FULL POWER. THE PILOT ELECTED TO DROP THE BANNER AND MAKE A PRECAUTIONARY LANDING IN THE OVERRUN AREA OF THE RUNWAY. ON TOUCHDOWN THE AIRCRAFT HIT HARD AND THE RIGHT LANDING GEAR DEPARTED THE AIRCRAFT FOLLOWED BY THE RIGHT WING STRIKING THE GROUND. IN A REEXAMINATION GIVEN BY AN FAA OPERATIONS INSPECTOR IT WAS FOUND THAT THE PILOT HAD BEEN USING A TECHNIQUE FOR PICKING UP BANNERS THAT CAUSED THE AIRCRAFT TO COME VERY CLOSE TO A STALL.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 952 hours in all; 56 in this make and model; 104 in the last 90 days; 833 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,118 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 1, 1986; 50 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,650 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 34, 2,100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:54 pm from SBY, 15 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.