# Accident 20140308002589A: Cessna 172D, Fairhope, AL, March 8, 2014

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 8, 2014, 14:11 local time
- Place: Fairhope, AL
- Airport: H L Sonny Callahan Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Landing: Approach
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 30.4606° N, 87.8769° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.4606&lon=-87.8769&mi=10
- Aircraft: N2755U, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N2755U-2016-03-24) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 172D (registry code 2072410, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172d) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental 0-300 series (registry code 17022, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-300-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172D
- Reported engine: CONT MOTOR 0-300 SER
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 1
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 633 total, 175 in this make and model
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA14LA147](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA14LA147) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20140308002589A

## Narrative

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

N2755U ENTERED THE TRAFFIC PATTERN ON A LEFT DOWNWIND TO RUNWAY 19 AT KCQF.  THE WINDS WERE OUT OF THE SOUTH AT APPROXIMATELY 5 -7 KNOTS.  A CH-53 HELICOPTER WAS OPERATING IN THE PATTERN AND WAS MAKING A LOW APPROACH TO THE RUNWAY AS N2755U WAS ON DOWNWIND.  THE HELICOPTER HOVER TAXIED AT APPROXIMATELY 30 FEET AGL AND CONTINUED DOWN THE RUNWAY AS N2755U CONTINUED TO CONDUCT A NORMAL APPROACH TO LANDING.  AS N2755U WAS ON SHORT FINAL, THE CH-53 WAS NOW APPROXIMATELY 2000 FEET DOWN THE RUNWAY AT 30 AGL AND BEGINNING A CLIMB OUT.  BETWEEN 30 -50 FEET AGL AND JUST OVER THE END OF THE RUNWAY, THE RIGHT WING OF N2755U ROLLED 90 DEGREES PERPENDICULAR TO THE RUNWAY.  THE WING THEN ABRUPTLY LOWERED AND THE AIRCRAFT IMPACTED THE GROUND AT A NEARLY FLAT ATTITUDE.  THE NOSEWHEEL BROKE AND FLAMES IMMEDIATELY ERUPTED AROUND THE AFT EDGES OF THE COWLING.  THE AIRCRAFT SKIDDED DOWN THE RUNWAY APRROXIMATELY 800 FEET AND THEN VEERED INTO THE GRASS TO THE RIGHT OF THE RUNWAY.  IT CAME TO REST JUST 50 FEET OFF THE EDGE OF THE RUNWAY.  BYSTANDERS RUSHED TO THE SCENE AND ASSISTED IN EXTRACTING THE PILOT JUST PRIOR TO THE CABIN BECOMING ENGULFED IN FLAMES.

## 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 ERA14LA147](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA14LA147), Mar 8, 2014: Cessna 172D (N2755U), Fairhope, AL, destroyed. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate separation from a helicopter during the approach to landing, which resulted in an encounter with the helicopter’s trailing vortices, a loss of airplane…

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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