No fatalities

27 Feb 2020: Champion 7ECA No Series — Athens, TX

Athens, TX, United States

On 27 Feb 2020, a Champion 7ECA No Series was involved in an aviation accident near Athens, TX. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The rear seat pilot and the student pilot's failure to see and avoid trees during initial climb following an aborted landing. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 1778583330Data APIEditorial standards

A student pilot, under supervision, bounced during landing, aborted, and struck trees while climbing out. The aircraft sustained damage to the engine mount, fuselage, and both wings.

Incident Overview

The flight was conducted with a pilot-in-command (PIC) seated in the back and a student pilot in the front. The objective was to familiarize the student with a private airstrip and its surrounding obstacles.

Sequence of Events

During landing, the airplane touched down "a little" long and bounced. The student pilot aborted the landing and initiated a "max performance" climb. The PIC had briefed the student about obstacles near the departure end of the runway, but the PIC could not see those obstacles from the rear seat during the climb.

As the airplane climbed, the left wing collided with a tree located to the left of the runway centerline. Subsequently, the right wing also struck a tree before the airplane impacted the ground in a nose-down attitude.

Aircraft Damage

The airplane sustained damage to the engine mount, fuselage, and both wings. The PIC reported no anomalies with the airplane.

Contributing factors

PilotStudent/instructed pilotInstructor/check pilotEffect on operation