# Accident 20200523006669A: Cessna 120, Gulkana, AK, May 23, 2020

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 23, 2020, 18:00 local time
- Place: Gulkana, AK
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 62.1900° N, 144.8758° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=62.1900&lon=-144.8758&mi=10
- Aircraft: N72536, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N72536) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 120 (registry code 2071402, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-120) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental C85 series (registry code 17008, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-c85-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 120
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Student
- Pilot flight hours: 198 total, 178 in this make and model, 16 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ANC20CA054](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC20CA054) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200523006669A

## Narrative

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

^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^NARRATIVE 6/5/2020:

NOT REALIZING AT THE TIME THAT THE GRADE WAS SLIGHTLY MORE THEN I HAD THOUGHT AND LIGHT/VARIABLE WINDS HAD SWITCHED TO A TAIL WIND. ON MY SECOND APPROACH (NORTH DIRECTION) I DECIDED TO GO AROUND BECAUSE I WAS CARING TOO MUCH SPEED AND CONCERNED WITH LOSING CONTROL AND HITTING MY FRIENDS AIRCRAFT THAT WAS TIED DOWN NEAR THE END ON THE LEFT. I COMMITTED AND APPLIED FULL POWER, PUSHED CARB HEAT IN AND SLOWLY BEGAN TO BUILD SPEED. I PREMATURELY BECAME AIRBORNE DUE TO A LARGE BUMP IN THE RUNWAY AND HELD GROUND EFFECT TO CONTINUE BUILDING AIRSPEED AND KNEW IT WOULD BE CLOSE. I PULL BACK EVER SO SLIGHTLY TO GET THE EXTRA ONE FOOT I NEEDED TO CLEAR. MY LEFT TIRE MADE CONTACT WITH A SMALL GROUP OF TREES RESULTING IN A LOSS OF AIRSPEED SUFFICIENT TO MAINTAIN LIFT. AT THE SAME TIME LOOSING GROUND EFFECT DUE TO THE BLUFF AT THE END. THE AIRCRAFT AND I CAME TO A SLOW STOP AMONGST THE WILLOWS AND SPRUCE TREES JUST OVER THE BLUFFS EDGE. THE IMPACT WAS VERY MILD, I WAS NOT INJURED AND ABLE TO EXIT THE AIRPLANE WITH EASE. I WAS WEARING A HELMET AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT.

## 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 ANC20CA054](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC20CA054), May 24, 2020: Cessna 120 (N72536), Gulkana, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain proper airspeed during final approach to landing, and his subsequent failure to attain sufficient altitude to clear trees during an attempted go-around.

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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