ERA10CA380

NTSB accident investigation · Cessna 152 · Shirley, NY · July 27, 2010

Accident · No injuriesData collectionFinal report
Date
July 27, 2010, 09:40 local (13:40 UTC)
Place
Shirley, NY
Injuries
1 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N757ZNCessna 152
Defining event
Landing-flare/touchdown: Abnormal runway contact
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report December 20, 2010
Report
Approved by Office Director
NTSB office
Eastern Region Aviation
Parties
FAA/FSDO
FAA report
20100727038999A
Case key
76782

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.

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Probable cause

The student pilot’s improper recovery from a bounced landing.

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.

Action: incorrect action performancePersonnel issues › Action/decision · Student/instructed pilotCessna 152: 22 casesAll aircraft: 1,386 casesProbable cause
Performance/control parameters: pitch controlAircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Incorrect use/operationCessna 152: 14 casesAll aircraft: 526 casesProbable cause

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

According to the student pilot, the accident flight was her first solo flight. As the airplane approached runway 33 for a third landing, the student pilot maintained an airspeed of 60 knots and was concentrating on "getting the nose in the correct position." When the airplane first touched down, "it bounced" and "the nose went up enough to slow [the airplane] down to put it into a stall." When the airplane landed a second time, the nose landing gear collapsed and the propeller struck the runway, which resulted in substantial damage to the engine firewall. The student pilot reported no mechanical anomalies with the airplane prior to the accident. During a subsequent examination of wreckage, a Federal Aviation Administration inspector also found no preexisting anomalies with the airplane. The student pilot noted that her total flight experience was approximately 56 hours; all of which were in the same make and model as the accident airplane. The winds reported at the airport about the time of the accident were variable at 6 knots.

Factual narrative

According to the student pilot, the accident flight was her first solo flight. As the airplane approached runway 33 for a third landing, the student pilot maintained an airspeed of 60 knots and was concentrating on "getting the nose in the correct position." When the airplane first touched down, "it bounced" and "the nose went up enough to slow [the airplane] down to put it into a stall." When the airplane landed a second time, the nose landing gear collapsed and the propeller struck the runway, which resulted in substantial damage to the engine firewall. The student pilot reported no mechanical anomalies with the airplane prior to the accident. During a subsequent examination of wreckage, a Federal Aviation Administration inspector also found no preexisting anomalies with the airplane. The student pilot noted that her total flight experience was approximately 56 hours; all of which were in the same make and model as the accident airplane. The winds reported at the airport about the time of the accident were variable at 6 knots.

Aircraft

Registration
N757ZN
Reported as
Cessna 152
Category
Airplane
Serial number
15280135
Engine
Lycoming O-235 SERIES, 115 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Operator
Mid Island Airservice Inc
Registered owner
Mid Island Airservice Inc
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Utility
Last inspection
Annual · January 19, 2010
Departed
HWV · Shirley, NY
Destination
HWV · Shirley, NY
Airport
HWV · Brookhaven Airport, runway 33, 4,222 × 150 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
68
Injuries
None
Certificate
Student
Medical
Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
Seat
Left
Flight hours
56 total · 56 in this make and model · 1 as pilot in command · 19 in the last 90 days · 8 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
Variable at 6 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
None
Temperature
81 °F, dew point 63 °F
Altimeter
30.09 inHg
Observed at
HWV

Docket · 6

The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 5, 2010, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.0 MB in all.

FAA reports on this event · 1

The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.