Champion AERONCA 7GCB accident near Fairhope, Alabama, July 15, 1996
On July 15, 1996 at about 11:15 pm local time, a Champion AERONCA 7GCB, registered N9908Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Fairhope, Alabama. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
failure of the pilot to maintain adequate airspeed, while manuevering at low altitude, which resulted in an inadvertent stall and uncontrolled impact with the water. The pilot's ostentatious display and the lack of altitude to recover from a stall were related factors.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 15, 1996 · about 11:15 pm local time
- Place
- Fairhope, Alabama · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Champion AERONCA 7GCB AERONCA 7G · all AERONCA 7GCBs on the register
- Registration
- N9908Y · registry record · serial 122
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The passenger stated the pilot descended the aircraft toward the water, then entered a steep climb. The passenger then noticed the aircraft was descending in a near vertical descent toward the water, where it crashed. Witnesses observed the aircraft descending toward the water, then pull up into a steep climb. After reaching about 200 feet, the right wing and nose dropped, and the aircraft descended nose first until impact with the water. Other witnesses had observed the aircraft in wing-over maneuvers at a low altitude over the water on the day before. Friends of the passenger, who flew with the pilot the day before, stated he had been performing wing-over maneuvers close to the water. At the time of the accident, the aircraft was estimated to be 97 pounds over the maximum allowable gross weight. Postcrash examination of the aircraft showed no evidence pre-crash failure or malfunction of the aircraft structure, floats, flight controls, or engine.
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: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,360 hours in all; 158 in this make and model; 39 in the last 90 days; 21 in the last 30 days; 1,832 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,391 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 23, 1996; 39 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,732 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 170° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:47 pm from BFM, 18 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.
Other NTSB records under N9908Y the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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 documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text 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 MIA96FA185.