Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
the pilot's misjudgment of speed and distance during the landing, and his failure to go around while there was sufficient runway remaining, which resulted in a runway overrun and an encounter with a soft terrain at the edge of a pond. Wet grass on the runway was a related factor.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Current)
Analysis
On September 16, 1996, about 1800 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 182, N737MD, was substantially damaged during a landing at The Minuteman Airport, Stow, Massachusetts. The commercial pilot and passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed for the flight which had departed from Worcester, Massachusetts about 1745, and was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
In the NTSB Accident report, the pilot stated:
"...Decided I would practice a short field landing on runway 30 (1600 [feet long]). The wind sock was hanging limp, but I discovered later that that I had bout 2-3 knots tail wind. Also I did not know the grass was wet. The first approach was high and I made a normal go-around. The second one (I thought) was OK, but I was a little bit high and fast. When I saw the landing wasn't going to work, it was too late to go around. I went into the pond at the end of the runway at about 10 mph."
The nose landing gear was bent rearward, and the firewall was wrinkled.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# NYC96LA185