- Date
- November 19, 1989, 14:30 local (19:30 UTC)
- Place
- Mitchellville, MD
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N52491Cessna 172
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 15, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19891119065739A
- Case key
- 11570
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 allowed the aircraft to enter an inadvertent porpoise during an aborted 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
After flying about 1/2 hr in the local area, the plt returned to the arpt & landed. He then taxied back to the apch end of the rwy & initiated another takeoff. He stated that he applied full power & full RPM was obtained. Also, he stated the acft lifted off at 60 to 65 KTS, but would only climb about 10 ft. he was unsure of whether or not, the acft would clear trees at the end of the rwy, so he elected to abort the takeoff (about 1/2 to 3/4 of the way down the rwy). Drg the aborted takeoff, the acft began to porpoise. Subsequently, its nose gear collapsed. No pre-acdnt part failure or malfunction of the acft or eng was rprtd.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N52491
- Reported as
- Cessna 172
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17274539
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-H2AD, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Robert E. Wehmann
- Registered owner
- Robert E Wehmann
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Airport
- W00 · Freeway, runway 18, 2,420 × 30 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
- 31
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 130 total · 7 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 270° at 5 knots, gusting 10
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 25,000 ft overcast
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N52491 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.