# NTSB DFW05CA101: Cessna 152, N68472, Stillwater, OK, April 8, 2005 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: April 8, 2005, 18:30 local (23:30 UTC) - Place: Stillwater, OK - Coordinates: 36.161109, -97.085556 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.1611&lon=-97.0856&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report July 7, 2005 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Federal Aciation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 61296 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=DFW05CA101 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/61296/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=61296 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DFW05CA101 ## Probable cause The student pilot's failure to maintain directional control during landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - on ground/water, landing - roll - directional control - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - On ground/water collision with object, landing - roll - object - airport sign/marker ## Analysis A 26-hour student pilot was practicing takeoffs and landings on his second solo flight. On his fifth solo landing, he touched down slightly to the right of the center line. He felt the main wheels touch down, followed by the nose wheel. At that time, "the airplane made a sharp turn to the left." The student pilot thought that he still had some throttle in, and he applied right rudder. He "felt the airplane tip to the left" and was afraid that the airplane "might tip over," so he proceeded off the runway. After exiting the runway, the left main landing gear collided with an airport directional sign. The airplane then came to a stop. The pilot performed the proper shut-down procedures, contacted the tower to report the accident, and exited the airplane, uninjured. When asked how this accident could have been prevented, the pilot stated, "proper use of the rudder pedals to maintain center line." ## Factual narrative On April 8, 2005, about 1830 central daylight time, a Cessna 152 single-engine airplane, N68472, sustained substantial damage while landing at the Stillwater Regional Airport (SWO), near Stillwater, Oklahoma. The student pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, was not injured. The airplane was owned by Christiansen Aviation, Inc., of Wilmington, Delaware, and operated by Oklahoma State University, of Stillwater, Oklahoma. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and a flight plan was not filed for the solo instructional flight. The local flight originated at SWO, approximately 1745. In a telephone conversation with an NTSB representative, the 26-hour student pilot reported that prior to his departure from SWO on his second solo flight, he performed four takeoffs and landings on Runway 17 (a 7,401 by 100-feet asphalt runway) at SWO with his instructor on board. The student then dropped off the instructor and proceeded to make four successful solo landings on Runway 17 at SWO. He reported that on his fifth solo landing, he touched down slightly to the right of the center line. He felt the main wheels touch down, followed by the nose wheel. At that time, "the airplane made a sharp turn to the left." The student pilot thought that he still had some throttle in, and he applied right rudder. He "felt the airplane tip to the left" and was afraid that the airplane "might tip over," so he proceeded off the runway. After exiting the runway, the left main landing gear collided with an airport directional sign. The airplane then came to a stop. The pilot performed the proper shut-down procedures, contacted the tower to report the accident, and exited the airplane, uninjured. When asked how this accident could have been prevented, the pilot stated, "proper use of the rudder pedals to maintain center line." A review of pictures of the airplane was structural damage to the fuselage where the left main landing gear attached. The automated surface observation system at SWO was being serviced at the time of the accident, therefore, a local weather report could not be obtained. The student pilot and instructor reported that the wind at SWO was from approximately 160 degrees at 8-10 knots at the time of the accident. At 1853, the automated weather observing system at the Ponca City Regional Airport (PNC), near Ponca City, Oklahoma, located approximately 34 nautical miles north of SWO, reported wind from 120 degrees at 9 knots, 10 statute miles visibility, a clear sky, temperature 70 degrees Fahrenheit, dew point 46 degrees Fahrenheit, and a barometric pressure setting of 29.76 inches of Mercury. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N68472](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N68472-2012-07-18), registration cancelled 2012-07-18, S/N 15282308, built 1978 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 152 - Registry model: [Cessna 152](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-152) (registry code 2071835) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-235 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-235-series) (registry code 41505, 4 cycle) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 15282308 - Airframe hours: 6185 - Engines: Lycoming O-235-L2C 115 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Instructional, Part 91 - Operator: Oklahoma State University Flight Center - Registered owner: Christiansen Aviation, Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: 100 hour, February 2, 2005, 86 hours before - Departed: SWO, Stillwater, OK - Airport: SWO, Stillwater Regional Airport, runway 17, 7,401 × 100 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Student pilot; age 19; injuries: none; student; medical: class 3; seat: left; flight hours: 26 total, 26 in this make and model, 20 in the last 90 days, 12 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 120° at 9 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 70 °F, dew point 46 °F - Altimeter: 29.76 inHg - Observed at: PNC ## 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 20050408004829A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20050408004829A), Apr 8, 2005: Cessna 152, Stillwater, OK, Substantial damage. (-23) Aircraft veered off left edge of runway 17 just after landing. Pilot stated he was reconfiguring for a takeoff and looked over his left shoulder to see… ## Other investigations on N68472 (1) 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. - [NTSB FTW01LA045](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW01LA045), Jan 4, 2001: Cessna 152 (N68472), Bristow, OK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's inadequate compensation for the crosswind conditions, which resulted in the airplane striking a snow bank during the landing flare/touchdown. A factor was the crosswind weather condition. ## Docket (1 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 18, 2005, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=61296. 450 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 450 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40471911&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-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.