N83391Aeronca 7DC · 1946

On July 12, 2023, about 1620 Alaska daylight time, a Aeronca 7DC airplane, N83391 sustained substantial damage when it was involved in an accident near Ninilchik, Alaska. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The airplane was operated by the pilot as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.

Pilot reported that he and a friend were on a scenic flight from the Homer Airport (HOM), Homer, Alaska, to the Soldotna Airport (SXQ), Soldotna, Alaska. En route he noticed the engine was not making enough power for the set power setting. At full throttle the engine was only producing about 2,400 rpm. He ran through checklist memory items for loss of engine power, which included applying carburetor heat; however, there was no change in the engine power. The pilot also opened both wing tanks to increase fuel in the header tank, which also resulted in no change. He then noticed the oil pressure gauge and oil temperature gauge both indicated zero. The pilot initiated a climb to clear rising terrain when the engine started to vibrate violently and then lost all power. He initiated a forced landing on to a road and, after touching down, he veered left to avoid cars. The airplane impacted a guardrail and then nosed over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and wings.

A postaccident examination of the engine revealed that the crankshaft’s No. 1 main bearing had spun, smearing metal into the crankcase and blocking the oil port. Numerous fragments of bearing material were found inside the case. The owner was not able to provide maintenance records for the engine.

On June 12, 2019, about 1930 Alaska daylight time, an Aeronca 7DC (Champ) airplane, N83391, sustained substantial damage, during an off-airport landing, following a loss of control after the tailwheel of the airplane separated from the fuselage near Nome Creek, Alaska. The private pilot and sole occupant sustained no injuries. The airplane was registered to the pilot and operated under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a visual flight rules personal flight. Day visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated from the Fairbanks International Airport (FAI), Fairbanks, Alaska, about 1830.

The pilot reported that, after selecting a dry, unimproved dirt airstrip to land, he performed a wheel landing. When he lowered the tail during the landing roll, the rudder pedal jammed, and the airplane veered right. He attempted to raise the tail to regain rudder control, with no effect. The airplane exited the intended landing area and was headed toward trees, he pulled the throttle to idle, and applied aft pressure on the control stick while applying the brakes. Subsequently, the airplane stopped short of the tree line in the brush.

The pilot further reported that during a postaccident inspection, the tailwheel had failed at the forward attach mount point, the tailwheel spring had dug into the ground, and the broken tailwheel had caught the rudder and had jammed it.

The airplane was examined on June 18, 2019 by an NTSB senior aviation accident investigator in Fairbanks. The examination revealed the aft portion of the airframe was corroded, with the airframe tubes discolored and damaged from the corrosion. The location where the tailwheel mounted to the airframe had failed and showed positive signs of corrosion throughout the tubing.

The last inspection on the airplane performed was an annual inspection dated February 23, 2019. Since the inspection, 109 days had elapsed, and the airplane had flown 44.9 hours. During the annual inspection, the mechanic noted that he shimmed the rudder up to prevent chaffing on the tail spring. He also noted that he shimmed the tailwheel spring to help with the geometry of the tailwheel.