N782SP

On December 26, 2002, about 1430 eastern standard time, a Cessna 172S, N782SP, was substantially damaged while landing at the Akron-Canton Regional Airport (CAK), Akron, Ohio. The certificated commercial pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan had been filed for the personal flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

According to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector, the pilot said he was landing with a crosswind component of about 15 knots, on runway 23, a 7,597-foot-long, 150-foot wide, asphalt runway. The airplane touched down hard and began to bounce. The airplane bounced five or six times before the pilot performed a go-around. During the second landing attempt, the pilot experienced difficulty manipulating the airplane's controls. The airplane landed hard, veered off the left side of the runway, and struck a snow bank.

Examination of the airplane by an FAA inspector revealed the outboard 6-inches of the propeller tips were curled aft and the upper part of the landing gear strut was pushed into and thru the firewall. Additionally, the movement of the airplane's control column, rudder pedals, aileron cables, and elevator trim was restricted due to impact damage.

The pilot did not report any mechanical problems prior to the first landing attempt. He reported 2,109 hours of total flight experience, which included about 205 hours in single engine airplanes and 17 hours in the make and model of the accident airplane.

An automated weather observation taken at CAK, at 1433, reported the winds were from 260 degrees at 12 knots.