- Date
- October 12, 1989, 13:40 local (18:40 UTC)
- Place
- Rock Falls, IL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N9157SBeech C23
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 26, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19891012040019A
- Case key
- 14575
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
Improper flare by the pilot, which resulted in a hard 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.
Analysis
Student pilot was on his first cross country solo, and set up approach in traffic pattern at destination airport utilizing VASI on final approach. Student stated aircraft hit the runway hard and bounced. On second ground contact, prop hit runway. On third ground contact, nose gear collapsed and aircraft slid to a stop. Cockpit started filling with smoke, student exited aircraft uninjured. Student noticed fire under aircraft being fed by stream of fuel from right wing tank sump drain. Aircraft was consumed by fire before it could be extinguished.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9157S
- Reported as
- Beech C23
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1773
- Airframe hours
- 2,968
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4K, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Donald E. Costello
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 1, 1989 · 70 hours before
- Departed
- ARR · Sugar Grove, IL
- Destination
- SQI · Rock Falls, IL
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- SQI · Whiteside Cty, runway 7, 6,500 × 100 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
- 51
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 30 total · 30 in this make and model · 13 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 30° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 68 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- RFD, 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.