- Date
- March 18, 1995, 14:30 local (18:30 UTC)
- Place
- Gretna, VA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N2439QCessna 182K
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 31, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19950318004339A
- Case key
- 9030
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 NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
The pilot's improper flare which resulted in a hard landing.
Analysis
The pilot reported that during slow flight over a private airstrip the airplane lost more altitude than he expected. He stated that he made a series of errors so he decided to land the airplane. A hard landing was made. The nose gear broke off and the airplane nosed over.
Factual narrative
On March 18, 1995, at 1430 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 182K, N2439Q, landed hard and nosed over at a private airstrip in Gretna, Virginia. The pilot was not injured. The airplane was substantially damaged. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The personal flight departed Pottsville, Pennsylvania, and its final destination was Danville, Virginia. The flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
The pilot reported that during slow flight over his private airstrip the airplane lost more altitude than he expected. The pilot wrote, "...pulled back on plane and a series of pilot errors, or misjudgments caused me to decide to land and I nosed down more than I had expected - The front wheel hit hard and broke and nose gear dug in and flipped the plane."
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.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2439Q
- Reported as
- Cessna 182K
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18257639
- Airframe hours
- 2,667
- Engine
- Continental O-470R, 230 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Roberts, Thomas R.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 3, 1994 · 11 hours before
- Departed
- PTW · Pottstown, PA
- Destination
- Danville, VA
- Airport
- runway 5, 2,400 × 80 ft, grass/turf
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
- 51
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 163 total · 97 in this make and model · 108 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 61 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.