# NTSB ATL99LA100: Cessna 177RG, N39PC, Columbia, SC, May 31, 1999 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: May 31, 1999, 12:25 local (16:25 UTC) - Place: Columbia, SC - Coordinates: 33.990554, -81.079948 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.9906&lon=-81.0799&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 21, 2000 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 46401 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ATL99LA100 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/46401/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL99LA100 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during a landing roll. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, landing - roll - terrain condition - ditch (contributing factor) - directional control - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) ## Analysis Upon arriving at his refueling stop, the pilot was issued a landing clearance for runway 5. The pilot reported that the airplane touched down on the main landing gear within the first third of the runway. The pilot further stated that as the nose wheel settled to the runway the airplane pulled to the left side of the runway. As the airplane continued veering to the left, the application of right rudder failed to arrest the left drift. The airplane veered off the left side of the runway and collided with a ditch. The examination of the accident site disclosed that the airplane rested in a ditch adjacent to the runway. Landing gear tracks were observed from the edge of the paved runway surface to the point where the airplane rested. Examination of the runway surface failed to disclose any obvious tire tracks associated with braking action. The subsequent examination of the braking system also failed to reveal internal component failure or malfunction. No mechanical malfunction or component failure was discovered during the examination of the airplane. ## Factual narrative On May 31, 1999, at 1225, eastern daylight time, a Cessna 177RG, N39PC, veered off the runway and collided with a ditch during a full stop landing at the Columbia Municipal Airport, in Columbia, South Carolina. 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; the private pilot and his passenger were not injured. The flight departed Ft Lauderdale, Florida, at 0930. The pilot was enroute to New Jersey and had planned a refueling stop in Columbia, South Carolina. Upon arriving in the Columbia area, the pilot was issued a landing clearance for runway 5. The pilot reported that the airplane touched down on the main landing gear within the first third of the runway. The pilot further stated that as the nose wheel settled to the runway, the airplane pulled to the left side of the runway centerline. Application of right rudder by the pilot failed to arrest the left drift. The airplane veered off the left side of the runway surface and collided with a ditch. The examination of the accident site disclosed that the airplane came to rest in a ditch adjacent to the runway. Landing gear tracks were observed from the edge of the paved runway surface to the point where the airplane rested. Examination of the runway surface failed to disclose any obvious tire tracks associated with braking action. The subsequent examination of the braking system also failed to reveal internal component failure or malfunction. No mechanical malfunction or component failure was discovered during the examination of the airplane. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N39PC](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N39PC-2018-01-18), registration cancelled 2018-01-18, S/N 177RG1272, built 1977 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 177RG - Registry model: [Cessna 177RG](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-177rg) (registry code 2073709) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming IO-360-A1B6D](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-io-360-a1b6d) (registry code 41593, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 177RG1272 - Airframe hours: 3301 - Engines: Lycoming IO-360-A1B6D 200 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Ross Lipman - Registered owner: Star Aviation Inc., - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, August 30, 1998, 147 hours before - Departed: EXE, FORT LAUDERDALE, FL - Destination: TEB, TETERBORO, NJ - Airport: CAE, Columbia Metro, runway 5, 8,000 × 150 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 42; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 3, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: left; flight hours: 1,389 total, 1,041 in this make and model, 1,226 as pilot in command, 74 in the last 90 days, 51 in the last 30 days, 5 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 110° at 9 knots, gusting 14 - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 5,000 ft broken - Temperature: 84 °F, dew point 57 °F - Altimeter: 30.00 inHg - Observed at: CAE ## 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 19990531044699A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990531044699A), May 31, 1999: Cessna 177RG, Columbia, SC, No damage. (-23) A/c ran off runway to the left during landing and impacted ditch. (.4) upon arriving at his refueling stop, the pilot was issued a landing clearance for… 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.