Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
failure of the pilot to maintain directional control of the airplane during a touch and go landing. Related factors were: the pilot allowed his attention to be diverted into the cockpit for an excessive amount of time, and the encounter with a ditch.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Current)
Analysis
On April 10, 1998, approximately 1600 mountain daylight time, a Cessna A152, N758YT, operated by Mountain Air Flying, LLC, was substantially damaged when it nosed over in a ditch during the landing roll at Brigham City, Utah. The student pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local instructional flight being conducted under Title 14 CFR Part 91. The flight had originated approximately 1545.
According to his accident report, the pilot was practicing touch and go landings. He had made one successful touch and go landing, and landed a second time. During the rollout, he looked down in the cockpit to configure the airplane for takeoff. When he looked up, the airplane had drifted slightly right of runway centerline. He applied left rudder, but the airplane continued drifting right and departed the west side of the runway. The pilot said the airplane went "into a small pond of water for a quick second," but the operator told FAA officials that the airplane struck a ditch and nosed over. The vertical stabilizer was crushed.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# FTW98LA180