N89644

On September 26, 1998, at 1300 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 152, N89644, was substantially damaged after a loss of control during landing at the Waterbury-Oxford Airport (OXC), Oxford, Connecticut. The certificated private pilot and passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local personal flight that originated at OXC, at 1215. No flight plan had been filed for the flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

In a written statement provided to the Connecticut State Police, the passenger stated:

"We taxied off [to] Runway 36 for a day of practice flights...the pre-flight was fine and the weather was good. We then flew the pattern and did 3 landings. On the fourth landing a gust of wind came in and blew us off the runway. The plane bounced three times and we were blown into the grass. The nose wheel was low, which caused it to break, and make us go into the grass."

In a written statement provided to the Connecticut State Police, the pilot stated:

"At approximately 1215, I taxied out to Runway 36 and took off without any problems. We then flew the pattern and did 3 landings. On the 4th landing, a gust of wind came in and blew us off the runway. This was my fault. Instead of correcting, I tried to put the plane down as quickly as possible. The plane bounced three times and we were blown into the grass. The nose wheel was low and that broke. The nose wheel caused us to go into the grass."

Examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration Aviation Safety Inspector revealed wing and fuselage damage. Further examination revealed firewall and landing gear damage that included a broken nose gear strut. The Inspector stated the nose gear was 'low' during the landing roll because the strut was broken during the landing.

According to the Inspector, the pilot reported there were no mechanical deficiencies with the airplane.

The pilot reported 85 hours of total flight experience, 20 of which were in the Cessna 152.