# NTSB CHI02CA211: Cessna 172N, N1373E, Spearfish, SD, July 18, 2002 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: July 18, 2002, 11:00 local (17:00 UTC) - Place: Spearfish, SD - Coordinates: 44.480278, -103.783058 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.4803&lon=-103.7831&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Takeoff](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/300) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report September 9, 2002 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA-FSDO-Rapid City - NTSB case key (mKey): 55309 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CHI02CA211 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/55309/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=55309 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI02CA211 ## Probable cause The probable cause of this accident was the pilot's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during the takeoff roll. Differences in control forces and aircraft handling due to initiating the takeoff without fully retracting the flaps is a contributing factor. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - on ground/water, takeoff - roll/run - directional control - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, takeoff - roll/run ## Analysis On July 18, 2002, at 1100 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N1373E, piloted by a student pilot, was substantially damaged during takeoff when it veered to the left and ran off the runway. The pilot was practicing takeoffs and landings on runway 12 (5,498 feet x 75 feet, asphalt) at the Black Hills--Clyde Ice Field Airport (SPF), Spearfish, South Dakota. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The flight was being conducted under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The pilot was not injured. The student pilot had a total flight time of 12 hrs. ## Factual narrative On July 18, 2002, at 1100 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N1373E, piloted by a student pilot, was substantially damaged during takeoff when it veered to the left and ran off the runway. The pilot was practicing takeoffs and landings on runway 12 (5,498 feet x 75 feet, asphalt) at the Black Hills--Clyde Ice Field Airport (SPF), Spearfish, South Dakota. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The flight was being conducted under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91, and was his first solo flight. The pilot reported no injuries. In his written statement, the pilot noted "I put full power into the aircraft and was rolling down runway 12 and noticed the nose was getting light prematurely. I glanced down and noticed the control lock hole on the flight control stick was 2-3 inches back from neutral position. I quickly tried to push the stick back to neutral but there was so much pressure on the stick I couldn't move it. . . . As soon as I noticed the pressure I throttled back to idle. Just before I throttled back to idle, the elevator, which was stuck in a liftoff position, create[d] enough lift to get the plane slightly airborne. My left tire came off the ground and I am not sure if my right one did or not. The left rudder correction I made for the airborne tire caused the plane to turn to the left. I hit the brakes (and throttled back to idle just before the left tire came airborne) and tried to steer the plane with the rudder pedals. The speed was too great to make any major directional changes on the ground. I was forced to stop in the grass of the left of runway 12." The pilot's flight instructor, who witnessed the accident, stated: "Aircraft began takeoff roll. Everything sounded and appeared normal. About 400 ~ 500' down the runway, the left wing . . . came up, after which the aircraft swerved to the left while rolling on the right main and nose wheels. The aircraft veered off the runway and came to a stop after crossing the borrow pit next to the runway." Both the pilot and flight instructor noted during phone interviews that the flaps were not completely retracted after the first landing. The pilot inadvertantly initiated the second takeoff with 10 degrees of flaps. The pilot holds a student pilot and third class medical certificate issued on July 3, 2002. He reported accumulating nearly twelve (12) hours of total flight time. All of which was in the same make and model as the accident airplane, and all had been acquired within the last ninety (90) days. The Cessna 172N airplane, S/N 17270975, completed an annual inspection on June 4, 2002, and had accumulated 7,245 hours at the time of the accident. Nearly 71 hours of those had been since the annual inspection. The Lycoming O-320 engine had acquired 546 hours since its last overhaul. The pilot reported that although the elevator control seemed "stuck" during the takeoff roll, the flight controls checked free and correct both before and after the accident. He did not report any problems with the engine. Weather conditions at the scene were reported by the pilot as clear, ten (10) miles visibility and south-east winds at ten (10) knots. Conditions reported by the Belle-Fourche (EFC) AWOS, fifteen (15) nm to the north-west (340 degrees magnetic), at 0845 mdt, were 4,000 scattered, thirty (30) miles visibility and wind from 100 degrees at four (4) knots. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N1373E](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N1373E), registered now, S/N 17270975, built 1978 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 172N - Registry model: [Cessna 172N](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172n) (registry code 2072434) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-320 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (registry code 41508, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 17270975 - Engines: Lycoming O-320 180 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Instructional, Part 91 - Operator: Eagle Aviation Inc., doing business as Eagle Aviation Inc. - Registered owner: Eagle Aviation Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: SPF, Spearfish, SD - Destination: Spearfish, SD - Airport: SPF, Black Hills-Clyde Ice Field, runway 12, 5,498 × 75 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Student pilot; age 19; injuries: none; student; medical: class 3, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; seat: left; flight hours: 12 total, 12 in this make and model, 1 as pilot in command, 12 in the last 90 days, 5 in the last 30 days, 2 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 135° at 10 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 88 °F - Altimeter: 30.05 inHg ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20020718016099A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020718016099A), Jul 18, 2002: Cessna 172N, Spearfish, SD, No damage. (-23) Student pilot Mr. Reede on a supervised solo on his second takeoff of the day veered to the left and ran off the runway. The aircraft nose gear struck a… ## Docket (2 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 16, 2002, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=55309. 431 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 376 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40463119&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Master.PDF - Witness Statement (item 2, .PDF, 55 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40463120&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Witness%20Statement-Master.PDF From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.