- Date
- June 9, 2013, 11:00 local (15:00 UTC)
- Place
- Ann Arbor, MI
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N857SPCessna 172S
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 23, 2013
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA Flight Standards District Office
- FAA report
- 20130609009259A
- Case key
- 87148
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 failure to make a go-around in a timely manner and his loss of control during landing.
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 pilot was cleared to land on runway 30. The recorded wind was 110 degrees at 12 knots, gusting to 17 knots. The airplane touched down at 50 to 60 knots and about 700 feet short of the intersection with runway 6-24. A slight upward slope at the intersection caused the airplane to bounce and become airborne. The pilot contemplated making a go-around, but elected to continue the landing. Upon touching down again, the airplane began to porpoise, the nose wheel collapsed, and the airplane came to a stop.
Factual narrative
According to the pilot's statements contained in both the NTSB and Pittsfield Police Department accident reports, he made a stop-and-go landing on runway 6. Due to other airplanes in the traffic pattern, the pilot requested and was cleared to land on runway 12. He inadvertently aligned the airplane with runway 30 and was subsequently cleared to land on that runway. The recorded wind was almost a direct tailwind (110 degrees) at 12 knots, gusting to 17 knots. The pilot said he touched down at 50 to 60 KIAS (knots indicated airspeed) and about 700 feet short of the intersection with runway 06-24. A slight upward slope at the intersection caused the airplane to bounce and become airborne. The pilot contemplated making a go-around, but elected to continue the landing. Upon touching down again, the airplane began to porpoise, the nose wheel collapsed, and the airplane came to a stop. The passengers and a witness corroborated the pilot's statements. Postaccident examination revealed buckling of the engine firewall and a hole in the bottom of the fuselage.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N857SP
- Reported as
- Cessna 172S
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 172S8115
- Airframe hours
- 4,367
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-L2A, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- BTG Aviation, LLC, doing business as Aviation Center
- Registered owner
- BTG Aviation, LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 22, 2012 · 49 hours before
- Departed
- KARB · Ann Arbot, MI
- Destination
- KARB · Ann Arbot, MI
- Airport
- KARB · Ann Arbor Municipal, runway 30, 2,750 × 110 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
- 37
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- September 25, 2012
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,597 total · 22 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 110° at 12 knots, gusting 17
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.07 inHg
- Observed at
- KARB
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 26, 2013, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.0 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.