- Date
- December 10, 1989, 13:45 local (19:45 UTC)
- Place
- Middleton, WI
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N75912Cessna 172N II
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 24, 1990
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19891210052839A
- Case key
- 14603
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 improper use of flaps to provide lift on short final approach instead of applying power and the failure to maintain aircraft control.
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
After about 45 minutes of local flight to practice airwork, the pilot returned to the airport, intending to practice short-field landings on the turf runway. The pilot reported that he used the same procedures (10 degrees of flaps abeam the threshold on downwind, with full flaps added just prior to touchdown to 'lift' the aircraft to the touchdown point) for the first two landings, and they were uneventful. The pilot stated that while on base leg for the third approach, he judged he was too high, so he added flaps to 20 degrees. When full flaps were added just prior to touchdown, the aircraft nosed down and struck the ground short of the end of the runway. The nose gear collapsed and the aircraft nosed over, coming to rest inverted. The pilot stated that he should have added power to get him to the runway, instead of relying on the flaps to 'lift' the aircraft to the touchdown point.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N75912
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N II
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17268036
- Airframe hours
- 1,964
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-H2AD, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Howell, Hugh B.
- Registered owner
- Howell, Hugh B
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 19, 1989 · 51 hours before
- Airport
- C29 · Morey, runway 36, 2,230 × 135 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
- 55
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,043 total · 1,039 in this make and model · 974 as pilot in command · 42 in the last 90 days · 7 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 10° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 10,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 28 °F, dew point 16 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MSN, 10 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.