- Date
- June 19, 2012, 13:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Lake Wales, FL
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N373CAPiper PA-28-161
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 7, 2012
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20120619011339A
- Case key
- 84044
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 flight instructor’s inadequate supervision of the student pilot’s power management, which resulted in a hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the student pilot's premature power reduction during the landing flare.
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
According to the flight instructor, he was conducting a training flight on short-field landings with the student pilot. During the last short-field landing, as the airplane flew over the runway numbers, the student pilot reduced the engine power to idle, and the airplane dropped and landed hard. According to the student pilot, as the airplane began to descend, he attempted a go-around, but did not advance the throttle quickly enough, and the airplane landed hard on the runway. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the firewall was buckled. The flight instructor and student pilot did not report any malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.
Factual narrative
According to the certified flight instructor (CFI), he was conducting a training flight with the student pilot on short field landings. During last short field landing, as the airplane flew over the runway numbers, the airplane dropped and landed hard. According to the student pilot, he recalled that the airplane was at 55 knots during short final. As the airplane began to descend, he attempted a go-around, but did not advance the throttle quickly enough and the airplane landed hard on the runway. During the examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector, it was revealed that the firewall was buckled. The CFI and student pilot did not report any flight control malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N373CA
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-161
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 2841014
- Airframe hours
- 8,762
- Engine
- Lycoming 0320D39, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Jules Aircraft Inc
- Registered owner
- Jules Aircraft Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · June 12, 2012 · 51 hours before
- Departed
- ISM · Kissimmee, FL
- Destination
- X07 · Lakes Wales, FL
- Airport
- X07 · Lake Wales Municipal Airport, runway 24, 3,999 × 75 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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 54
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- May 11, 2011
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 4,400 total · 180 in this make and model
- Role
- Student pilot
- Age
- 18
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 30 total · 30 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 110° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 2,400 ft broken
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.97 inHg
- Observed at
- X07
Docket · 7
The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 6, 2012, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 4.9 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.