- Date
- November 22, 2009, 13:40 local (18:40 UTC)
- Place
- Panancea, FL
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N35638Cessna 172
- Defining event
- Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 6, 2010
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- Case key
- 75098
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 rollout.
Findings · 2
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 pilot said that the airplane "became uncontrollable" during the landing rollout. The airplane subsequently exited the left side of the runway, struck a tree, and came to rest in a ditch. The pilot further stated that the runway was "watery and soft." Examination of the wreckage by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector did not reveal any preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings. The nearest weather reporting facility, located approximately 25 nautical miles north of the accident location, reported winds from 140 degrees at 10 knots about the time of the accident.
Factual narrative
The airplane was landing on runway 36, a 2,590-foot-long; 70-foot-wide, turf runway. The pilot stated that the airplane "became uncontrollable" during the landing roll out. The airplane subsequently "drifted" off the left side of the runway, struck a tree, and came to rest in a ditch. The pilot further stated that the runway was "watery and soft." Examination of the wreckage by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector did not reveal any mechanical failures or malfunctions. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings. The nearest weather reporting facility, located approximately 25 nautical miles north of the accident location, reported winds from 140 degrees at 10 knots, about the time of the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N35638
- Reported as
- Cessna 172 (I)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17256879
- Airframe hours
- 3,800
- Engine
- Lycoming O320, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Michael A. Morgan
- Registered owner
- Michael A. Morgan
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 12, 2009
- Departed
- 2J0 · Panancea, FL
- Destination
- 2J0 · Panancea, FL
- Airport
- 2J0 · Wakulla County Airport, runway 36, 2,590 × 70 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
- 71
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- July 12, 2009
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 690 total · 578 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 140° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 66 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.87 inHg
- Observed at
- TLH, 25 nm away
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on February 9, 2010, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 697 KB in all.