Champion 7ECA accident near Easton, Maryland, August 3, 1997
On August 3, 1997 at about 12:15 pm local time, a Champion 7ECA, registered N4178Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Easton, Maryland (Easton airport). It was a personal flight 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
an inadequate weld repair, which resulted in insufficient structural strength of the left main gear.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 3, 1997 · about 12:15 pm local time
- Place
- Easton, Maryland · Easton · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Champion 7ECA · all 7ECAs on the register
- Registration
- N4178Y · no longer on the register · serial 1187-77
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that he made a 3-point landing with no bounce, and immediately thereafter, the airplane swerved left. He corrected, and the airplane started to swerve right, in a tightening circle. The left wing scrapped the runway, and the left main landing gear collapsed under the fuselage. An FAA inspector reported that the landing gear failed at a weld. Corrosion was visible on a portion of the face of the fracture surface. There was no record of the weld in the airplane logbooks.
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, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: balloon; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 1,649 hours in all; 28 in this make and model; 33 in the last 90 days; 19 in the last 30 days; 1,549 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,125 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection; 43 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,650 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-C1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ANP Anapolis MD at 11:00 am
- Destination: ESN
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 4, 5,511 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 4 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 18,000 ft; scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 86°F (30°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:50 pm from SBY, 38 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.
Other NTSB records under N4178Y the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.