- Date
- May 1, 2012, 16:15 local (21:15 UTC)
- Place
- San Antonio, TX
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N94500Cessna 152
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 18, 2012
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA -- San Antonio Flight Standards
- FAA report
- 20120501009919A
- Case key
- 83567
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 student pilot's misjudgment of the landing flare, which resulted in a hard/bounced landing and subsequent impact with the runway.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The solo student pilot intended to practice takeoffs and landings at a nearby airport. On the first landing, the airplane touched down on the main wheels and bounced. The nose landing gear subsequently impacted the runway, separating the nosewheel and landing gear strut. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the firewall and wing struts. The pilot noted that she had very little practice with straight-in approaches. In addition, she thought that using the traffic pattern to set up for the landing might have prevented the accident. The student pilot's logbook revealed that this was her second solo flight and the first time she traveled to the nearby airport without a flight instructor on board. She had logged a total of 1/2 hour of solo flight time prior to the accident flight. Several flights had been logged between the student pilot's home airport and the nearby airport with a flight instructor on board. The logbook contained a current solo endorsement and an endorsement for repeated solo flights between the airports involved.
Factual narrative
The solo student pilot intended to practice takeoffs and landings at a nearby airport. On the first landing, the airplane touched down on the main wheels and bounced. The nose landing gear subsequently impacted the runway, separating the nose wheel and landing gear strut. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the firewall and wing struts. The pilot noted that she had very little practice with straight-in approaches. In addition, she thought that using the traffic pattern to setup for the landing might have prevented the accident. The student pilot's logbook revealed that this was her second solo flight and the first time she traveled to the nearby airport without a flight instructor on-board. She had logged a total of 0.5 hours solo flight time prior to the accident flight. Several flights had been logged between the student pilot's home airport and the nearby airport with a flight instructor on-board. The logbook contained a current solo endorsement and an endorsement for repeated solo flight between the airports involved.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N94500
- Reported as
- Cessna 152
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 15285692
- Airframe hours
- 9,376
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-L2C, 110 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Alpha Tango Flying Services Inc.
- Registered owner
- Laguna Verde Leasing Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · April 30, 2012
- Departed
- SAT · San Antonio, TX
- Destination
- SSF · San Antonio, TX
- Airport
- SSF · Stinson Municipal, runway 14, 1,428 × 100 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
- Student pilot
- Age
- 42
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- April 6, 2012
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 36 total · 32 in this make and model · 1 as pilot in command · 31 in the last 90 days · 13 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 130° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 8,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 91 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.81 inHg
- Observed at
- SSF
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on May 31, 2012, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.8 MB in all.
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 N94500 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.