CHI01LA205

NTSB accident investigation · Cessna 172S · Lake in the Hil, IL · July 11, 2001

Accident · No injuriesLimited investigationFinal report
Date
July 11, 2001, 18:30 local (23:30 UTC)
Place
Lake in the Hil, IL
Injuries
1 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N795SPCessna 172S
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report May 21, 2002
Report
Approved by Office Director
Parties
Federal Aviation Administration
FAA report
20010711015119A
Case key
53270

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 misjudging the flare during that landing. Factors were the wrong runway selected by the student pilot, the tailwinds encountered during that landing and the flight instructor's inadequate supervision during that landing.

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.

Hard landingLanding
Flare - misjudgedPilot in commandCause
Weather condition - tailwindFactor
Wrong runway - selectedPilot in commandFactor
Supervision - inadequatePilot in command(cfi)Factor

Analysis

The airplane sustained substantial damage during a hard landing. The pilot was uninjured during the solo instructional flight. The student pilot stated, "As the plane touched down on runway it seemed to land on main wheels but harder that normal and bounced upward at this time[.] I added a little throttle to level plane back for proper landing and then pulled throttle back to idle as plane had smoothed out to flair however the plane touched the runway even a little harder than first bounced and I felt the plane was not safe to land at this time and did another go around. I did not feel or see the prop or tail of plane touch runway surface[.] As I did the proper procedure for go around the plane seemed to fly proper. I then was instructed to use runway 08 for landing because of other traffic on route to 08 on final. I followed this plane in after it had cleared the runway and landed the plane with more of a normal landing. At this time a instructor greeted me upon securing the plane and damage was noted with prop being bent on both ends." The student pilot and instructor pilot stated that there were no "mechanical malfunction failure" with the airplane during the flight. The wind in the area was 080 degrees at 10 knots.

Factual narrative

On July 11, 2001, about 1830 central daylight time, a Cessna 172S, N795SP, piloted by a student pilot, sustained substantial damage during a hard landing at Lake in the Hills Airport (3CK), near Lake in the Hills, Illinois. The solo instructional flight was operating under 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. No flight plan was on file. The pilot was uninjured. The local flight departed from 3CK at time unknown and was performing a landing at the time of the accident.

The student pilot stated:

I proceeded in normal route for pattern and attempted my second landing

upon final I felt the plane was in proper requirements of landing aprox

65-70 Kts with full flaps and aprox. 900 feet at approaching runway 26. I

attempted to put the plane on runway for normal landing. [T]he plane

seemed to float above the runway longer than normal. As the plane touched

down on runway it seemed to land on main wheels but harder that normal and

bounced upward at this time[.] I added a little throttle to level plane

back for proper landing and then pulled throttle back to idle as plane had

smoothed out to flair however the plane touched the runway even a little

harder than first bounced and I felt the plane was not safe to land at

this time and did another go around. I did not feel or see the prop or

tail of plane touch runway surface[.] As I did the proper procedure for

go around the plane seemed to fly proper. I then was instructed to use

runway 08 for landing because of other traffic on route to 08 on final. I

followed this plane in after it had cleared the runway and landed the

plane with more of a normal landing. At this time a instructor greeted me

upon securing the plane and damage was noted with prop being bent on both

ends.

The student pilot and instructor pilot stated that there were no "mechanical malfunction failure" with the airplane during the flight.

At 1853, the DuPage Airport, West Chicago, Illinois, weather was: Wind 080 degrees at 10 knots; visibility 10 statute miles; sky condition clear; temperature 23 degrees C; dew point 12 degrees C; altimeter 29.97 inches of mercury.

Aircraft

Registration
N795SP
Reported as
Cessna 172S
Category
Airplane
Serial number
172S8719
Airframe hours
117.8
Engine
Textron Lyc. IO-360-L2A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Instructional · Part 91
Operator
Northern Illinois Flight Center
Registered owner
Longford Aviation, Inc.
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
Last inspection
Annual · July 3, 2001 · 10.2 hours before
Departed
3CK · Lake In The Hil, IL
Destination
IL
Airport
3CK · Lake In The Hills, runway 26, 3,058 × 50 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
48
Injuries
None
Certificate
Student
Medical
Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
Seat
Left
Flight hours
35 total · 35 in this make and model · 2 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
80° at 10 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
None
Temperature
73 °F, dew point 54 °F
Altimeter
29.96 inHg
Observed at
DPA, 19 nm away

FAA reports on this event · 1

The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.