# Accident 20021226034259A: Cessna 172S, Akron, OH, December 26, 2002

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 26, 2002, 13:28 local time
- Place: Akron, OH
- Airport: Akron-Canton Regional
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Level Off Touchdown
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 40.9161° N, 81.4422° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.9161&lon=-81.4422&mi=10
- Aircraft: N782SP, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N782SP-2005-08-12) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 172S (registry code 2072439, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172s) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming I0360 series (registry code 41515, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-i0360-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172S
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 1,821 total, 19 in this make and model, 50 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB NYC03LA032](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC03LA032) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20021226034259A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(.19) 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 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 RIGHT 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. AN AUTOMATED WEATHER OBSERVATION TAKEN AT CAK, AT 1433, REPORTED THE WINDS WERE FROM 260 DEGREES AT 12 KNOTS. (-23) MR. KIMES WAS ATTEMPTING A CROSS WIND LANDING ON RWY 23 AT CAK. HE SAID THAT HE WAS CARRYING EXTRA POWER TO HELP WITH THE CROSSWIND. DURING THE LANDING FLARE THE AIRCRAFT SEEMED TO HIT THE GROUND HARD AND BOUNCED BACK INTO THE AIR. THE AIRCRAFT STARTED TO PORPOISE DOWN THE RUNWAY AND BOUNCED UP TO 4 TO 6 TIMES BEFORE A GO-AROUND WAS INITIATED. MR. KIMES SEEMED TO THINK THAT THE ELEVATOR BECAME LOCKED UP, POSSIBLY BECAUSE THE AUTO-PILOT WAS ON. ON THE SUBSEQUENT APPROACH AND LANDING THE AIRCRAFT HIT THE GROUND HARD ENOUGH TO COLLAPSE THE NOSE GEAR. MR. KIMES LOST CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT AND SLID OFF THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. THERE WAS SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE TO THE PROPELLER TIPS, BOTTOM OF FUSELAGE, NOSE GEAR, FIREWALL AND FLOOR FORWARD OF THE SEAT TRACKS. NO REPORTED INJURIES.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB NYC03LA032](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC03LA032), Dec 26, 2002: Cessna 172S (N782SP), Akron, OH, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's improper flare which resulted in a hard landing.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.