- Date
- December 29, 2004, 10:52 local (16:52 UTC)
- Place
- Houston, TX
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N118FRCessna 172P
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 24, 2005
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Houston, Texas
- FAA report
- 20041229032079A
- Case key
- 60779
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 failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll. A contributing factor was the muddy condition of the terrain.
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 189-hour fixed-wing private pilot landed uneventfully with ten degrees of flaps. The pilot reported that as he began to apply brakes, the airplane veered off to the left. The pilot attempted to correct the situation, and the airplane veered to the right, and then back to the left again. At this time, the left main landing gear exited the runway and dug into muddy terrain. As a result, the airplane nosed into the ground, flipped over, and came to rest inverted.
Factual narrative
On December 29, 2004, at 1052 central standard time, at Cessna 172P single-engine airplane, N118FR, registered to a private individual and operated by Hi-Tech Aviation of Spring, Texas, sustained substantial damage following a loss of control during landing roll at the David Wayne Hooks Memorial Airport (DWH), near Houston, Texas. The private pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a flight plan was not filed for the personal flight, which was conducted under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The local flight originated from DWH approximately 1005.
In a written statement, the 189-hour fixed-wing private pilot reported that he rented the airplane and practiced approximately five touch-and-go's on runway 17L at DWH. The pilot then departed to the west and noticed that " the weather was a bit marginal," so he returned to DWH. The pilot was cleared for a full-stop landing on runway 17R and landed uneventfully with ten degrees of flaps. He reported that as he began to apply brakes, the airplane veered off to the left. The pilot attempted to correct the situation, and the airplane veered to the right, and then back to the left again. At this time, the left main landing gear exited the runway and dug into muddy terrain. As a result, the airplane nosed into the ground, flipped over, and came to rest inverted. The pilot then evacuated the airplane, uninjured.
Examination of the airplane by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector, who responded to the accident site, revealed structural damage to the left and right wing spars, as well as structural damage to the right wing strut. The braking system was examined, and no anomalies were found.
At 1053, the automated weather observing system at DWH reported wind from 130 degrees at 6 knots, haze, few clouds at 1,000 feet, scattered clouds at 2,500 feet, scattered clouds at 3,400 feet, temperature 66 degrees Fahrenheit, dew point 63 degrees Fahrenheit, and an altimeter setting of 30.33 inches of Mercury.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N118FR
- Reported as
- Cessna 172P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17276268
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Hi-Tech Aviation
- Registered owner
- Lawrence Luthy
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- DWH · Houston, TX
- Airport
- DWH · David Wayne Hooks Memorial, runway 17R, 7,009 × 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
- 44
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Private, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Last flight review
- March 24, 2003
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,535 total · 7 in this make and model · 0 in the last 90 days · 0 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 130° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 6 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 66 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.32 inHg
- Observed at
- DWH
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.