- Date
- July 16, 2014
- Place
- Murphysboro, IL
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N737SYCessna 172N
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Not reported
- Status
- Completed · report May 13, 2015
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- FAA report
- 20140716015799A
- Case key
- 89959
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
A hard landing by person(s) unknown.
Findings · 1
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
According to a written statement from maintenance personnel, a pilot discovered the airplane's nose wheel at an "unusual angle" during a preflight inspection. The pilot reported the damage to the fixed based operator (FBO) who asked maintenance to examine the airplane. Examination of the airplane revealed damage to the nose wheel and underside of the fuselage aft of the main landing gear, and substantial damage to the rudder. The FBO contacted the certificated flight instructors and pilots of the three flights that occurred preceding the damage report. The first and third flights were airplane checkout flights with the flight instructor; the second flight was a personal flight conducted by a senior flight instructor. Written statements provided to the FBO from the two flight instructors of those flights failed to reveal who was responsible for the damage, when or where it occurred, or how it was caused. Also unknown, is why the flight instructors did not observe the damage prior to their respective flights.
Factual narrative
According to a written statement from maintenance personnel, a pilot discovered the airplane's nose wheel at an "unusual angle" during a preflight inspection. The pilot reported the damage to the fixed based operator (FBO) who asked maintenance to examine the airplane. Examination of the airplane revealed damage to the nose wheel and underside of the fuselage aft of the main landing gear, and substantial damage to the rudder. The FBO contacted the certificated flight instructors and pilots of the three flights that occurred preceding the damage report. The first and third flights were airplane checkout flights with the flight instructor; the second flight was a personal flight conducted by a senior flight instructor. Written statements provided to the FBO from the two flight instructors of those flights failed to reveal who was responsible for the damage, when or where it occurred, or how it was caused. Also unknown, is why the flight instructors did not observe the damage prior to their respective flights.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N737SY
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N (N)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17269650
- Built
- 1977
- Engine
- Lycoming 0-320 SERIES, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 91
- Operator
- Flightline
- Registered owner
- Dunn William J
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Destination
- MDH · Murphysboro, IL
- Flight plan
- Unknown
- Airport
- MDH · Southern Illinois
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
- Other flight crew
- Medical
- Unknown, Unknown
- Flight hours
- 0 total · 0 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Not reported
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 27, 2015, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 260 KB 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 N737SY · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.