# NTSB ATL03LA060: Cessna 172P, N52546, Concord, NC, March 9, 2003 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: March 8, 2003, 20:15 local (Mar 9, 2003, 01:15 UTC) - Place: Concord, NC - Coordinates: 35.385276, -80.709724 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.3853&lon=-80.7097&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report June 30, 2004 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Charlotte FSDO - 33 - NTSB case key (mKey): 56622 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ATL03LA060 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/56622/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL03LA060 ## Probable cause The pilot's improper flare during touchdown and failure to properly recover from a bounced landing, which resulted in a loss of control and inflight collision with the runway. A factor was the pilot did not understand the porpoise condition during landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Hard landing, landing - flare/touchdown - terrain condition - runway - flare - improper, pilot in command (cause) - recovery from bounced landing - improper, pilot in command (cause) - porpoise/pilot-induced oscillation - not recognized, pilot in command (contributing factor) ## Analysis The pilot initiated the landing flare at idle or very low power, and the airplane bounced about four times. Each bounce was higher and more pronounced than the previous one. The pilot stated that he thought the bounces would stop, and he concentrated on keeping the airplane as straight as possible on the runway. After the third or fourth bounce, the nosewheel tire blew, and the propeller struck the ground. The airplane came to a stop in the center of the runway, and the pilot shut down the engine. The pilot stated that, after the accident, he flew with a flight instructor and learned what a porpoise condition is, how to recognize it, and how to recover the airplane from it. ## Factual narrative On March 8, 2003, at 2015 eastern standard time, a Cessna 172P, N52546, registered to ISO Aero Service, Inc., and operated by the private pilot, collided with the runway during a bounced landing at Concord Regional Airport in Concord, North Carolina. The personal flight was operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 with a visual flight rules plan filed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The private pilot and the passenger were not injured, and the airplane sustained substantial damage. The local flight originated in Concord, North Carolina, about 1915. The pilot was cleared to land on runway 20 at Concord Regional Airport in Concord, North Carolina. The pilot stated the approach was normal and on glideslope at 65 knots with 20 degrees of flaps. He stated he performed the landing flare at idle or very low power, and the airplane bounced. The pilot stated that, after the second bounce, "the characteristic of the plane seemed to change with the bounces becoming higher and more pronounced than the previous ones." The pilot stated he thought the bounces would stop, and he concentrated on keeping the airplane as straight as possible on the runway. After the third or fourth bounce, the nosewheel tire blew, and the propeller struck the ground. The airplane came to a stop in the center of the runway, and the pilot shut down the engine. Examination of the airplane revealed buckling of the right side of the fuselage near the main landing gear strut, buckling of the firewall near the lower right engine mount, buckling of the floor, damage to the nose gear, and damage to both propeller blade tips. The pilot stated that, after the accident, he flew with a flight instructor and learned what a porpoise condition is, how to recognize it, and how to recover the airplane from it. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N52546](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N52546), registered now, S/N 17274552 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 172P - Registry model: [Cessna 172P](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172p) (registry code 2072436) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-320 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (registry code 41508, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 17274552 - Airframe hours: 9298 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-D2J 160 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Francis Michael McLaurin - Registered owner: ISO Aero Service, Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: 100 hour, January 16, 2003, 54 hours before - Departed: JQF, Concord, NC - Destination: JQF, Concord, NC - Flight plan: VFR - Airport: KJQF, Concord Regional, runway 20, 5,500 × 100 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 46; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review February 18, 2002; seat: left; flight hours: 145 total, 143 in this make and model, 67 as pilot in command, 6 in the last 90 days, 2 in the last 30 days, 2 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Night - Wind: 200° at 8 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 59 °F, dew point 43 °F - Altimeter: 30.07 inHg - Observed at: KJQF ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20030308008209A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030308008209A), Mar 8, 2003: Cessna 172P, Concord, NC, Substantial damage. (-23) During landing at Concord at night the airplane bounced four times. On the fourth touch down the aircraft hit the runway hard enough to blow out the nose… 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. --- 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.