# NTSB ATL96LA086: Cessna 172, N97277, Winston-Salem, NC, May 6, 1996 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: May 6, 1996, 11:45 local (15:45 UTC) - Place: Winston-Salem, NC - Coordinates: 36.160182, -80.229133 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.1602&lon=-80.2291&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report December 16, 1996 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 3728 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ATL96LA086 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/3728/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL96LA086 ## Probable cause The pilot's improper use of the elevator in response to a bounced landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Hard landing, landing - flare/touchdown - porpoise/pilot-induced oscillation - not corrected, pilot in command (cause) - elevator - improper use of, pilot in command (cause) ## Analysis The pilot had been making touch and go landings and was executing his final landing. He reported that he elected to end the flight because of a fresh onset of stomach cramps from food poisoning the previous day. At touchdown, the airplane bounced which the pilot reported he countered by pulling the yoke aft. His next memory was of the airplane landing hard on the nose gear. ## Factual narrative On May 6, 1996, about 1145 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172, N97277, landed hard during the landing touchdown at Winston- Salem, North Carolina. The airplane was operated by Piedmont Flight Center under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91, and visual flight rules. A flight plan was not filed for the local, personal flight. The private pilot was not injured, and the airplane was substantially damaged. The flight originated about 1130, on the same day, at Smith Reynolds Airport, Winston-Salem. According to the inspector who examined the airplane, the nose landing gear was pushed up into the gear housing, and the main landing gear track was two inches wider than that specified in the pilot's operating handbook. The inspector stated there was also damage to the bottom of the airplane that was consistent with a hard landing. The pilot had been performing touch and go landings. He elected to end the flight with the onset of fresh stomach cramps from food poisoning the previous day. The pilot reported that the final landing resulted in the airplane bouncing. He pulled aft on the yoke, followed by a second touch down that was hard and on the nose wheel. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N97277](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N97277-2017-02-24), registration cancelled 2017-02-24, S/N 17276172, built 1984 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 172 - Registry model: [Cessna 172P](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172p) (registry code 2072436) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental I0-470 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-i0-470-series) (registry code 17027, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 17276172 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-D2J 150 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Robert L. Gates - Registered owner: Piedmont Flight Center - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: INT - Airport: INT, Smith Reynolds, runway 3, 3,938 × 150 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 33; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: left; flight hours: 86 total, 42 in this make and model, 36 as pilot in command, 4 in the last 90 days, 2 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 290° at 9 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 15,000 ft overcast - Temperature: 79 °F, dew point 61 °F - Altimeter: 30.00 inHg - Observed at: INT, 1 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 19960506010149A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19960506010149A), May 6, 1996: Cessna 172P, Winston Salem, NC, Substantial damage. Made hard landing. Pushed nose gear into engine. Spread gear. Damage to bottom airplane. ## Other investigations on N97277 (2) 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 GAA16CA047](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/GAA16CA047), Nov 9, 2015: Cessna 172M (N97277), Miami, FL, substantial damage. Probable cause: The student pilot's failure to maintain pitch control during the landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing. - [NTSB ERA15CA038](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA15CA038), Oct 30, 2014: Cessna 172P (N97277), Miami, FL, substantial damage. Probable cause: The failure of the student pilot to achieve a proper touchdown during a touch-and-go landing resulting in a hard landing and substantial damage. 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.