- Date
- September 25, 1997, 19:15 local (23:15 UTC)
- Place
- Greenville, SC
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N738SZCessna 172N
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed · report January 30, 1998
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19970925029009A
- Case key
- 3906
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 improper use of the elevator control and delayed liftoff during takeoff, which resulted in an inadvertent porpoise, collision with the runway, and collapse of the nose gear as he aborted the takeoff.
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 stated that, the initial takeoff started from the (approach) end of runway 36, and that he had applied full power. At about the midfield point, the airplane lifted off. However, the pilot did not feel there was sufficient power to take off, so he aborted the takeoff. He said he pulled the power all the way back, and the airplane descended nose first, collided the runway nose gear first, and nosed over. A witness stated that during the takeoff roll, the airplane began to porpoise before the nose gear collided with the runway. Examination of the airplane failed to disclose a mechanical problem. The pilot did not report experiencing a mechanical problem with the airplane during the attempted takeoff. According to the pilot operation handbook, normal takeoff ground run should have been about 478 feet. The runway was 5393 feet in length.
Factual narrative
On September 25, 1997, about 1915 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N738SZ, collided the nose gear with the runway and nosed over at Greenville Downtown Airport in Greenville, South Carolina. The personal flight operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 and visual flight rules. No flight plan was filed for the touch and go practice flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The private pilot was not injured, and the airplane was substantially damaged. The flight originated from Greenville, South Carolina, at 1914.
The pilot stated that, the initial takeoff started from the end of the runway and he had applied full power. At the mid field point of runway 36, the airplane lifted off. However, the pilot did not feel that the airplane had sufficient power to takeoff, so he aborted the takeoff. The pilot said he pulled the power all the way back and the airplane descended nose first on the runway. The nose gear collapsed, and the airplane nosed over. An eyewitness stated that during the takeoff roll, the airplane began to porpoise before the nose gear collided with the runway.
An examination of the airplane failed to disclose a mechanical problem, and the pilot did not report experiencing a mechanical problem with the airplane during the attempted takeoff. The pilot's operation handbook states that the normal takeoff ground run is 478 feet. Runway 36 is 5393 feet long.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N738SZ
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17270213
- Airframe hours
- 3,854
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320 H2AD, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Mark Christopher
- Registered owner
- Carolina Environmental Systems
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 11, 1997 · 7 hours before
- Departed
- GMU
- Airport
- GMU · Greenville Downtown, runway 36, 5,393 × 150 ft, asphalt
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
- 43
- Certificate
- Private
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 131 total · 6 in this make and model · 53 as pilot in command · 45 in the last 90 days · 16 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 5,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 61 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- CAE, 81 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.