American Champion (Acac) 7GCBC accident near Watertown, Wisconsin, August 5, 2005
On August 5, 2005 at about 10:00 pm local time, a American Champion (Acac) 7GCBC, registered N515KG, was substantially damaged in an accident near Watertown, Wisconsin (Watertown Municipal Airport). 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flightcrew's failure to maintain directional control during landing rollout.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 5, 2005 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Watertown, Wisconsin · Watertown Municipal Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- American Champion (Acac) 7GCBC
- Registration
- N515KG · registry record · serial 1249-98
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The tailwheel airplane veered off the runway during landing roll and impacted a muddy ditch. The pilot reported that after touchdown the airplane veered to the left and he used right rudder input in an attempt to realign with the runway centerline. The pilot stated that "next we were heading extreme right, I had a feeling the tailwheel was off the ground." The flight instructor stated that she was "talking [the pilot] through the landing, and also helping out with [control] stick movement." The flight instructor reported that after touchdown, as she began to bring the control stick aft the pilot pushed the control stick forward which elevated the tailwheel off the runway. The flight instructor stated that the pilot also "pushed right rudder" which turned the airplane "sideways." The flight instructor reported that she "immediately brought the [control] stick back and tried to correct the rudder." The flight instructor stated that the tailwheel came back down to the runway, but she was unable to "correct the rudder" because of "resistance." The flight instructor reported that she felt the pilot had "frozen on the controls." The flight instructor stated that the only thing she could do was "slam on the brakes" in an attempt to stop the airplane before it entered a ditch alongside the runway. The flight instructor reported that the "mud was so deep that the brakes were not effective and [airplane] kept sliding" into the ditch where it nosed over. The pilot had no experience in the accident airplane make/model prior to the accident flight. The flight instructor had approximately 20 hours in conventional (tailwheel) airplanes, of which 16.6 hours were in the accident airplane make/model.
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
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 829 hours in all; 17 in this make and model; 170 in the last 90 days; 58 in the last 30 days; 405 on instruments
- Last flight review: September 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 141 hours in all; 0 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 0 in the last 30 days; 75 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: September 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,650 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2D (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Wisconsin Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: RYV Watertown WI at 9:30 pm
- Destination: RYV Watertown WI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 23, 4,430 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.20 inHg
- Observation at 10:15 pm from RYV
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CHI05CA219.