- Date
- December 29, 2021, 17:15 local (22:15 UTC)
- Place
- Berlin, NJ
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N6295ECessna 172
- Defining event
- Approach-VFR pattern final: Birdstrike
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20211229021479A
- Case key
- 104500
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
An inadvertent in-flight collision with a goose while on approach.
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 reported that he turned onto final approach at dusk and turned the landing light on to look for deer. On short final approach, over the runway numbers about 50 to 80 ft above ground level, the landing light illuminated a flock of geese on the ground, and they scattered into the air. One of the geese contacted the leading-edge outboard section of the right wing and the airplane landed uneventfully. The pilot further reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions with the airplane. Examination of the right wing by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed substantial damage to the spar.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6295E
- Reported as
- Cessna 172
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 46395
- Built
- 1959
- Airframe hours
- 3,577
- Engine
- Continental O-300A, 145 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 13, 2021 · 8 hours before
- Departed
- NJ25 · Clarksboro, NJ
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- 19N · Camden County Airport, runway 23, 3,094 × 45 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Electronic flight bag or handheld device, Handheld GPS, ADS-B
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
- 59
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- July 26, 2021
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- Lap only
- Flight hours
- 1,204 total · 1,000 in this make and model · 1,185 as pilot in command · 13 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Wind
- 360° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 9 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 46 °F, dew point 43 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.95 inHg
- Observed at
- KVAY, 10 nm away
- METAR
- KVAY 292154Z AUTO 36003KT 9SM FEW011 08/06 A2995
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 25, 2022, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.7 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.