- Date
- May 18, 2008, 17:30 local (22:30 UTC)
- Place
- San Antonio, TX
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N1281UCessna CE-172M
- Defining event
- Landing: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 30, 2008
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA FSDO
- FAA report
- 20080518839329A
- Case key
- 68066
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 student pilots improper short field landing procedure and excessive rate of descent. A contributing factor was the student pilots improper recovery from a bounced landing.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The student pilot stated on the pilot operator report that she was 1,000 feet above the runway and three miles out on a straight in approach to a 5,000 foot long runway when she decided to make a short field landing. The pilot "heard a pop sound" when the nose wheel touched on the first impact and the airplane bounced two more times before landing. The hard landing caused structural damage to the wing spar and to the nose gear and firewall. The student pilot was unable to taxi because of the blown nose tire.
Factual narrative
The student pilot stated on the pilot operator report that she was 1,000 feet above the runway and three miles out on a straight in approach to a 5,000 foot long runway when she decided to make a short field landing. The pilot "heard a pop sound" when the nose wheel touched on the first impact and the airplane bounced two more times before landing. The hard landing caused structural damage to the wing spar and to the nose gear and firewall. The student pilot was unable to taxi because of the blown nose tire.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1281U
- Reported as
- Cessna CE-172M
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17266976
- Airframe hours
- 13,728
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Wright Flyers Aviation Inc
- Registered owner
- Wright Flyers Holdings LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · March 1, 2008 · 71 hours before
- Departed
- SAT · San Antonio, TX
- Airport
- SAT · San Antonio Intl, runway 30R, 5,519 × 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
- Student pilot
- Age
- 20
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- May 1, 2005
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 85 total · 85 in this make and model · 2 as pilot in command · 16 in the last 90 days · 7 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 10° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 91 °F, dew point 45 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.84 inHg
- Observed at
- KSAT
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.