N734PW

On July 7, 2004, about 0700 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N734PW, bounced upon touchdown at the Chemehuevi Valley Airport (49X), Chemehuevi Valley, California. During the subsequent landing rollout, the airplane veered off the side of the runway, rolled into a ditch, and nosed over. The airplane was substantially damaged, and the student pilot sustained minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the solo instructional flight, and no flight plan had been filed. The pilot/owner was operating the flight under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91, and it originated from Lake Havasu City, Arizona, about 50 minutes before the accident.

During a July 8, 2004, telephone interview with the National Transportation Safety Board investigator, the student pilot stated that days earlier he had flown to 49X with his certified flight instructor (CFI), who thereafter authorized him to return to the airport to practice takeoffs and landings. According to the student pilot, upon flying back to the airport, he performed two takeoffs and landings on runway 34 without mishap. During his third landing, with 20 degrees of wing flaps extended, the airplane initially touched down on its left main landing gear. Thereafter, the right main landing gear contacted the runway. Following this, he encountered a right crosswind that resulted in his losing directional control, and the airplane swerved off the narrow runway. The pilot additionally reported that he increased engine power and pulled the control yoke aft, but the airplane impacted a nearby embankment and nosed over.

The student's CFI reported to the Safety Board investigator that she interviewed her student about the accident. The CFI opined that the student had made a bounced landing and had likely inadequately applied corrective recovery techniques. She also indicated that the student had likely encountered some degree of crosswind. The pilot reported that all of his 13.0 hours of solo flying experience were acquired in the accident model of airplane.

The manager of the Lake Havasu City Airport (HII) reported that the weather conditions at HII are typically similar to those at 49X. Normally, there are no strong wind gusts during the morning hours. The manager provided archived weather data indicating, in pertinent part, that about 0702, HII's surface wind was from 170 degrees at 6 knots. A few minutes before and after the accident, at 0652 and at 0712, the wind at HII was from 190 degrees at 3 knots, and from 150 degrees at 5 knots, respectively. He reported no gusts.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration's "Airport/Facility Directory," 49X's asphalt-surfaced runway 34 is 5,000 feet long by 75 feet wide. The airport's elevation is 631 feet mean sea level (msl). HII is located about 5 miles northeast of 49X at 781 feet msl.