- Date
- July 29, 2003, 11:45 local (16:45 UTC)
- Place
- New Era, MI
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N460JHCessna 182H
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 2, 2004
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20030729018169A
- Case key
- 57587
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 misjudged flare which led to a hard landing and subsequent collapse of the landing gear.
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.
Analysis
The airplane sustained substantial damage when the airplane's nose gear collapsed during landing. The airplane subsequently flipped over. The pilot stated, "The approach was normal with full flaps and the nose trimmed slightly high. Upon touchdown the nose wheel collapsed and the aircraft pitched down and the prop dug in. Then the airplane flipped on its back. The wind was variable at 5 knots. The pilot's report did not list any mechanical malfunctions occurring during the flight. Examination of the airplane wreckage revealed no pre-existing anomalies.
Factual narrative
On July 29, 2003, about 1145 central daylight time, a Cessna 182H, N460JH, piloted by a private pilot, sustained substantial damage when the airplane flipped over when the airplane's nose gear collapsed during a landing at a private airstrip near New Era, Michigan. The personal 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 reported no injuries. The flight originated from Oceana County Airport (C04), near Hart/Shelby, Michigan, at 1130 and was performing a landing at the private airstrip at the time of the accident.
The pilot stated:
I left in my aircraft from my home base of C04 to fly out to my
private grass strip for a visit. The approach was normal with full
flaps and the nose trimmed slightly high. Upon touchdown the
nose wheel collapsed and the aircraft pitched down and the prop
dug in. Then the airplane flipped on its back.
At 1055, the recorded Muskegon County Airport, near Muskegon, Michigan, weather was: Wind variable at 5 knots; visibility 10 statute miles; sky condition clear; temperature 24 degrees C; dew point 13 degrees C; altimeter 30.05 inches of mercury.
The pilot's report did not list any mechanical malfunctions occurring during the accident flight.
A Federal Aviation Administration Inspector examined the airplane wreckage and no pre-existing anomalies were detected.
The pilot reported:
This aircraft had ... [an inertia] reel shoulder harness system
installed ... and I walked away with just a scratch on my arm. I
highly recommend them in any aircraft with just a lap belt installed.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N460JH
- Reported as
- Cessna 182H
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18256285
- Airframe hours
- 1,864.74
- Engine
- Continental O-470-R, 230 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- James Hoekenga
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 20, 2002 · 23 hours before
- Departed
- C04 · Hart/Shelby, MI
- Destination
- New Era, MI
- Airport
- runway 360, 1,050 × 100 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
- 44
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Last flight review
- December 10, 2002
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 324 total · 115 in this make and model · 281 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 7 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Variable at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.04 inHg
- Observed at
- MKG, 35 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.