Single-engine piston

N4278E

1997 Homebuilt Challenger 1

Registered No accidents on file
Built
1997
Serial
028700219
Class
Single-engine piston
Engines
Rotax 447
Status
Current as of October 2026
Registered owner
Individual · sign in to see
Based
Valley Springs, CA
What's N4278E worth? Track flights
Registration record

N4278E on the FAA register

Type
1997 Homebuilt Challenger 1
Serial
028700219
Engines
Rotax 447
Registered owner
Individual — the name of an individual registrant is shown to signed-in users. Sign in
Valley Springs, CA
Certificate issued
2015-04-29
Airworthiness date
2008-05-28
Registration expires
2028-04-30
Airworthiness class
Light sport · airplane
Mode S (hex)
A51915
Mode S (octal)
51214425
Seats (type)
1
Weight class
up to 12,499 lb
Status
Current as of October 2026
Registry history

Timeline

  • 2028-04-30
    Registration expires (renewal due).
  • 2015-04-29
    Certificate of registration issued as N4278E to the current registrant.
  • 2008-05-28
    Airworthiness date on the current FAA record (light sport category (airplane)).
  • 1997
    Manufactured (1997).
  • 1994-08-24
    N4278E previously assigned to a Piper Tomahawk (s/n 3878A0525); cancelled.
  • 1949-06-17
    N4278E previously assigned to a Aeronca 7 Champion AC / Champion 7-AC / 7 AC Champ (s/n 7AC7166); cancelled.
Overview

About N4278E

N4278E is a 1997 Homebuilt Challenger 1, serial number 028700219. It is registered to an individual in Valley Springs, California. The current certificate of registration was issued on April 29, 2015 and expires on April 30, 2028.

The FAA aircraft reference file describes the type as a single-engine piston, one Rotax 447 engine and 1 seats. Its airworthiness certificate is light sport category (airplane), dated May 28, 2008.

No NTSB accident or incident reports and no FAA preliminary notices are on file for this airframe as N4278E. 1 earlier record involves a different aircraft that carried the same N-number.

Safety record

Accident & incident history

1989-07-29 Accident · Liberty, MO Damage: Substantial NTSB · MKC89LA171
Reported aircraft: Piper PA-38-112 — a different aircraft that carried the N4278E registration before this airframe.
Probable cause: CONTROL INTERFERENCE BY THE DUAL STUDENT AS THE INSTRUCTOR TRIED TO RECOVER FROM THE STUDENT'S BOUNCED LANDING, AND FAILURE TO MAINTAIN PROPER RUNWAY ALIGNMENT. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS WERE: IMPROPER FLARE BY THE STUDENT, THE CROSSWIND, THE STUDENT'S APPREHENSION DURING THE BOUNCED LANDING, AND THE CROP BESIDE THE RUNWAY.

Sources: NTSB aviation accident database and CAROL case system, FAA preliminary accident & incident notices. Search accident records

Same state

Other aircraft registered in California

N4275U
1991 Homebuilt Coyote S6
N42777
1968 Cessna 182L Skylane
N4277B
1977 Cessna R172 Hawk XP
N4278Z
1999 Maule MXT-7-180A
N427BW
Bell 427
N427CT
2007 Flight Design CTSW
All 27,686 aircraft registered in California →
More from Quad City Challenger

Quad City Challenger models on the register

Own N4278E?

Get a free valuation, digitize the logbooks, or list it on fyiAero.

Free valuation Logbook transcription

Browse: Aircraft registered in California· Registry by state· FAA registry stats

Data: FAA Aircraft Registry (October 2026), including deregistered aircraft; NTSB and FAA accident data; fyiAero listing history. Individual owners' names are shown to signed-in users and street addresses are never shown. Type figures are published specifications, not this aircraft's.