- Date
- May 14, 2022, 14:10 local (18:10 UTC)
- Place
- Lancaster, NY
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N20459Cessna 172M
- Defining event
- Takeoff: Loss of control in flight
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- 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
- 20220514006169A
- Case key
- 105084
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 pilot’s excessive pitch during takeoff resulted in a loss of control and impact with terrain. Contributing was the student’s failure to relinquish the controls when ordered by the instructor.
Findings · 4
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 flight instructor reported that after she demonstrated a soft-field takeoff, she directed the student to conduct one. During the takeoff roll, the student maintained excessive back pressure on the control yoke and was told by the instructor to reduce the back pressure. Once the airplane lifted off the runway it started to veer to the left; the instructor again informed the student to reduce back pressure to decrease the pitch, but the student maintained a grip on the controls and held excessive right rudder. The instructor stated, “I have the controls,” but the student “locked up and blocked” them and failed to relinquish the controls. The instructor was able to reduce the pitch, but directional control was lost, and the left wing contacted the runway surface, and the airplane departed the runway and flipped over, which resulted in substantial damage to the wings and airframe. The instructor stated that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N20459
- Reported as
- Cessna 172M
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17261305
- Built
- 1973
- Airframe hours
- 2,894
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4M, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Little Bird Airways LLC
- Registered owner
- Little Bird Airways LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 30, 2021 · 73 hours before
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- BQR · Buffalo-Lancaster Regional Airport, runway 09/27, 3,199 × 75 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- 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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 26
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- June 13, 2021
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 360.5 total · 300 in this make and model · 309.4 as pilot in command · 20 in the last 90 days · 16.2 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Student pilot
- Age
- 16
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 13.9 total · 13.9 in this make and model · 0 as pilot in command · 3.8 in the last 90 days · 3.8 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 6,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.94 inHg
- Observed at
- BUF, 6 nm away
- METAR
- KBUF 141754Z VRB03KT 10SM BKN060 BKN070 BKN250 27/14 A2994 RMK AO2 SLP135 T02670144 10272 20200 56026 $
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 8, 2022, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 7.5 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.