# Accident 20040704020959A: Cessna 172C, Pottstown, PA, July 4, 2004

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 4, 2004, 15:00 local time
- Place: Pottstown, PA
- Airport: Pottstown Municipal Airport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Level Off Touchdown
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 40.2603° N, 75.6708° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.2603&lon=-75.6708&mi=10
- Aircraft: N38RA (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172C
- People aboard: 4
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 165 total, 3 in this make and model, 1 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB NYC04LA165](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC04LA165) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20040704020959A

## Narrative

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

(-23) A WITNESS AND PRIVATE PILOT, OBSERVED A PILOT, ONE ADULT AND TWO CHILDREN BOARD THE AIRCRAFT. THE WITNESS STATED THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED RUNWAY 25 WITH WINDS OUT OF APPROXIMATELY 160 DEGREES AT 5 KNOTS. THE WITNESS STATED THE AIRCRAFT LIFTED OFF THE RUNWAY IN APPROXIMATELY ONE THOUSAND (1,000) FEET, AND APPEARED TO HAVE FLAPS EXTENDED. THE WITNESS STATED THE AIRCRAFT CLIMBED TO APPROXIMATELY FOUR HUNDRED (400) FEET AT AN UNUSUALLY NOSE HIGH ATTITUDE. THE AIRCRAFT TURNED RIGHT, AND THEN SHARPLY TO THE LEFT. THE PILOT LANDED THE AIRCRAFT HARD ON RUNWAY 07, PORPOISED THREE BOUNCES, SHEARED OFF THE NOSE WHEEL, BUCKLED THE FIREWALL, AND STRUCK THE PROPELLER. THERE WERE NO REPORTED INJURIES, AND CONDITIONS WERE VFR. THE ADULT PASSENGER IN THE RIGHT SEAT STATED HE HEARD A BUZZING THROUGHOUT THE TAKEOFF, AND THE NOSE WHEEL TIRE HAD BURST DURING LANDING.

## 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 NYC04LA165](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC04LA165), Jul 4, 2004: Cessna 172C (N38RA), Pottstown, PA, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's inadequate 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.

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