On January 11, 1984, a Bellanca 7ECA (registration N8646) was involved in an aviation accident near Throckmorton, TX. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive.
An aircraft crashed in a steep left wing down, nose down attitude during a checkout flight for pipeline patrol. The front seat pilot had 22 hours in make/model. Weather was VMC, no mechanical or physical impairment found. No witnesses. Aircraft had flown about 1 hour since refueling.
Flight Purpose and Circumstances
The flight was conducted for the purpose of checking out the front seat pilot on pipeline patrol operations. The aircraft had been flying for approximately one hour since its last refueling when it crashed.
Accident Sequence
According to the investigation, the aircraft crashed in a steep left wing down, nose down attitude. There are no known witnesses to the accident.
Pilot Experience
The front seat pilot had only 22 hours of experience in this make and model of aircraft.
Weather and Mechanical Findings
The weather at the time was visual meteorological conditions (VMC). The investigation found no mechanical malfunctions of equipment or physical impairment of the pilots.