Summary
On November 17, 2007, a Cessna 172N (N6492E) was involved in an incident near Statesboro, GA. All 1 person aboard were uninjured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this incident to be: The student pilot's failure to maintain a proper flare at touchdown.
The 27-hour student pilot of the Cessna 172N successfully completed the first leg of a solo cross country flight, and returned for landing on runway 23 at his airport of origin. The pilot reported that on final approach, he was lined up correctly, was at the appropriate speed, and that everything "felt good." He also reported that when he began the flare, a gust of wind "caught the back of the plane," and lifted the tail. The pilot believed that he had landed nose gear first. He completed the rollout and taxied to the terminal without further incident. The pilot did not experience any preimpact failures or malfunctions with the airplane, and a postaccident examination of the airplane revealed damage to the propeller, nose landing gear and firewall.
This incident is documented in NTSB report NYC08CA037. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N6492E.
Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
The student pilot's failure to maintain a proper flare at touchdown.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Current)
Analysis
The 27-hour student pilot of the Cessna 172N successfully completed the first leg of a solo cross country flight, and returned for landing on runway 23 at his airport of origin. The pilot reported that on final approach, he was lined up correctly, was at the appropriate speed, and that everything "felt good." He also reported that when he began the flare, a gust of wind "caught the back of the plane," and lifted the tail. The pilot believed that he had landed nose gear first. He completed the rollout and taxied to the terminal without further incident. The pilot did not experience any preimpact failures or malfunctions with the airplane, and a postaccident examination of the airplane revealed damage to the propeller, nose landing gear and firewall. The weather observation at the airport about the time of the accident recorded winds from 220 degrees at 4 knots.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# NYC08CA037