N5447L

On October 25, 2000, about 1330 hours Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 152, N5447L, sustained substantial damage during a hard landing at Ramona, California. Pinnacle Aviation Academy was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The certified flight instructor and student pilot were not injured. The instructional flight departed McClellan-Palomar airport, Carlsbad, California, about 1200. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed.

According to the operator, the flight instructor and student pilot were practicing a touch-and-go at Ramona after practicing steep turns and unusual attitude recoveries earlier in the flight. The flight instructor stated that the student's approach was "high and fast," and that at midfield they were at 7 feet agl and 70 knots. The instructor ordered the student to go-around and the student pushed forward on the control wheel with his left hand and pulled back on the throttle with his right hand. The airplane struck the runway in a nose down attitude, causing damage to the propeller, nose landing gear, lower cowling, engine mount, and firewall.

According to the operator, the student pilot is a retired Naval Aviator with about 4,000 hours of experience flying military jet airplanes. The accident occurred on the student's third flight in an airplane with a control wheel. In the accident airplane, the left-seated pilot typically manipulates the control wheel with the left hand and the throttle with the right hand. In most military fighter airplanes, the throttle is manipulated with the left hand and the stick is manipulated with the right hand.