Summary
On February 27, 1994, a Cessna 172 (N21840) was involved in an incident near Gillette, WY. All 1 person aboard were uninjured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this incident to be: WAS THE PILOT'S INADEQUATE REMEDIAL ACTION. FACTORS INCLUDE AN INADVERTENT PORPOISE, AND A LACK OF TOTAL EXPERIENCE.
On February 27, 1994, approximately 1100 mountain standard time (MST), a Cessna 172, N21840, experienced a hard landing at Gillette-Campbell County Airport, Gillette, Wyoming. The student pilot, who was the sole occupant of the aircraft, was not injured, but the aircraft sustained substantial damage. The local instructional flight, which originally departed the same airport about 90 minutes earlier, was in visual meteorological conditions at the time of the accident. No flight plan had been filed, and there was no report of an ELT activation.
According to her instructor, this was the student pilot's second solo flight. The instructor said that during the flight the student had successfully completed 12 or 13 touch-and-go landings prior to the accident.
This incident is documented in NTSB report SEA94LA068. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N21840.
Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
WAS THE PILOT'S INADEQUATE REMEDIAL ACTION. FACTORS INCLUDE AN INADVERTENT PORPOISE, AND A LACK OF TOTAL EXPERIENCE.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Current)
Analysis
On February 27, 1994, approximately 1100 mountain standard time (MST), a Cessna 172, N21840, experienced a hard landing at Gillette-Campbell County Airport, Gillette, Wyoming. The student pilot, who was the sole occupant of the aircraft, was not injured, but the aircraft sustained substantial damage. The local instructional flight, which originally departed the same airport about 90 minutes earlier, was in visual meteorological conditions at the time of the accident. No flight plan had been filed, and there was no report of an ELT activation.
According to her instructor, this was the student pilot's second solo flight. The instructor said that during the flight the student had successfully completed 12 or 13 touch-and-go landings prior to the accident. He stated that the accident sequence began when, during an attempted landing, the aircraft began to porpoise. While attempting remedial action to stop the porpoising, the pilot allowed the nose wheel to impact the runway hard enough to cause substantial damage to the airframe.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# SEA94LA068