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Accidents · NTSB LAX05CA005 · Final report

Bellanca 7GCBC accident near Winslow, Arizona, October 12, 2004

On October 12, 2004 at about 8:00 pm local time, a Bellanca 7GCBC, registered N50338, was substantially damaged in an accident near Winslow, Arizona (Winslow Lindbergh Regional airport). It was a personal 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 pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing rollout that resulted in a ground loop.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
October 12, 2004 · about 8:00 pm local time
Place
Winslow, Arizona · Winslow Lindbergh Regional · 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
N50338 · registry record · serial 1072-79
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

The airplane ground looped during the landing rollout. On final approach at the destination airport the pilot encountered turbulence that rolled the airplane 30 degrees to the right. He made the appropriate correction, and landed normally. The left wing lifted up again on the landing roll and he corrected with left aileron input. The left wing dropped hard, and the airplane rotated counterclockwise and ground looped. The pilot stated that there were no mechanical problems with the airplane or engine. The pilot reported the winds as out of the north at 7 knots.

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: 3,630 hours in all; 217 in this make and model; 32 in the last 90 days; 17 in the last 30 days
  • Medical certificate: Class 3

The aircraft

  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2D (piston); 0 hours total

The flight

  • Departed from: 57AZ Tucson AZ
  • Destination: INW Winslow AZ
  • Flight plan: none
  • Runway 04, 7,499 ft by 150 ft

Weather at the time

  • Light: daylight
  • Visibility: 10 statute miles
  • Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew1
Passengers1

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.