- Date
- April 7, 2003, 15:20 local (20:20 UTC)
- Place
- Durant, OK
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N116SSCessna 152
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 30, 2004
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Oklahoma City Flight Standards District Office
- FAA report
- 20030407004519A
- Case key
- 56786
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 improper landing flare resulting in a hard landing and his improper recovery procedures for a bounced landing.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The 17-hour student pilot, on his first solo flight, made one successful landing. On the second landing on runway 35, the aircraft bounced, and then bounced again to a height of approximately 20-30 feet. The aircraft nosed down and impacted the runway on its nose landing gear. The winds at the time of the accident were reported from 350 degrees at 12 knots.
Factual narrative
On April 7, 2003, approximately 1520 central daylight time, a Cessna 152 single-engine airplane, N116SS, was substantially damaged during a hard landing at the Eaker Field Airport (DUA) near Durant, Oklahoma. The airplane was registered to and operated by the Southeastern University of Durant. The student pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a flight plan was not filed for the 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instructional flight. The local supervised solo flight originated at DUA approximately 1415, as a dual instructional flight.
According to the certificated flight instructor (CFI), after the student pilot demonstrated three normal takeoff and landings, a simulated engine failure, and go-around procedures, he released him for his first solo flight. Before exiting the airplane, he checked the wind. The wind was "350 degrees at 12 knots." The CFI then went to an area where he could observe the student's final approaches, landings, and takeoffs.
The student taxied the airplane to runway 35 and after completing run-up checks, taxied the airplane onto runway 35 and took off. The ensuing approach and landing "appeared to be non-eventful and completed properly." The 17-hour student pilot exited the runway and taxied the airplane back to runway 35 for another takeoff and landing. During the second landing, the airplane bounced, and then bounced again to a height of 20-30 feet. The nose of the airplane dropped, and the airplane impacted the runway on its nose landing gear bending it aft. The airplane came to a stop upright on the runway.
An examination of the airplane, by the operator and an FAA inspector, revealed that the propeller and left wing tip were damaged, and both the left and right side fuselage skin aft of the firewall was wrinkled.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N116SS
- Reported as
- Cessna 152
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 7582334
- Airframe hours
- 8,621.1
- Engine
- Avco Lycoming O-235-L2C, 110 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Southeastern University
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · March 6, 2003 · 17.2 hours before
- Departed
- DUA · Durant, OK
- Airport
- DUA · Eaker Field Airport, runway 35, 5,001 × 100 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
- Student pilot
- Age
- 20
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 17 total · 6 in this make and model · 1 as pilot in command · 8 in the last 90 days · 8 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 350° at 10 knots, gusting 12
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 41 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.01 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N116SS · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.