- Date
- April 30, 2000, 15:30 local (19:30 UTC)
- Place
- Clinton, TN
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N13330Cessna 172M
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 18, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20000430020449A
- Case key
- 49113
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's inadequate in-flight planning necessitating an intentional ground loop maneuver on landing. Contributing factors were the pilot's misjudgment of distance/airspeed, the high terrain surrounding the runway, and the tailwind condition.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot reported that he was returning to the 1300-foot sod airstrip after refueling at a nearby airport. According to the pilot, he maintained a final approach airspeed of 80 to 85 knots. After completing the before landing checklist, which included lowering wing flaps and applying carburetor heat, the pilot realized that the landing approach had a tailwind component. The pilot reported that as he continued the approach, the airspeed was too high and he did not feel that the airplane had sufficient engine power to clear the lake and higher terrain beyond the end of the runway. He elected to land long on the runway and ground looped the airplane to avoid an embankment and a lake on the departure end of the runway. An eyewitness stated that the airplane was fast and long over the runway for the landing. Examination of the accident site showed that the airplane had rotated 180 degrees on the ground and was facing the opposite landing direction. The pilot reported no mechanical problems with the airplane.
Factual narrative
On April 30, 2000, at 1530 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172M, N13330, collided with the ground during an attempted landing on a private airstrip in Clinton, Tennessee. The personal flight was operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 with no flight plan filed. Visual weather conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The airplane sustained substantial damage, and the private pilot and his passenger were not injured. The local flight departed Clinton, Tennessee, at 1430.
The pilot reported that he was returning to the 1300 foot sod airstrip in Clinton after refueling at a nearby airport. According to the pilot, he maintained a final approach airspeed of 80 to 85 knots. After completing a before landing checklist, which included lowering wing flaps and applying carburetor heat, the pilot realized that the landing approach had a tailwind component. As the pilot continued the approach, the pilot said that the airspeed was too high for the approach and he did not feel that the airplane had sufficient engine power to clear the lake and higher terrain beyond the end of the runway. He elected to land long on the runway and ground looped the airplane to avoid an embankment and a lake on the departure end of the runway. An eyewitness stated that the airplane was fast and long over the runway for the landing.
Examination of the accident site showed that the airplane had rotated 180 degrees on the ground and was facing the opposite landing direction. No mechanical problems with the airplane were reported by the pilot.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N13330
- Reported as
- Cessna 172M
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 172-62674
- Airframe hours
- 3,481
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-E2D, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Terry L. Mullins
- Registered owner
- Mullins Aviation
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 28, 2000 · 1 hours before
- Airport
- NONE · Mullins Field, runway 33, 1,300 × 50 ft, grass/turf
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 47
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 426 total · 31 in this make and model · 248 as pilot in command · 28 in the last 90 days · 19 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 300° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 41 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- TYS, 30 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.