- Date
- September 2, 2017, 17:30 local (21:30 UTC)
- Place
- Newport, RI
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N547CTFlight Design Ctls
- Defining event
- Landing: Abnormal runway contact
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 21, 2018
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- General Aviation Accidents
- Parties
- FAA
- Case key
- 96344
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, which resulted in a hard, bounced landing.
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
The solo student pilot reported that, during the landing flare, he "felt an updraft," and the airplane landed hard. The airplane bounced, the nose landing gear (NLG) struck the ground, the airplane bounced again, and he then performed a go-around. The student entered the traffic pattern and landed without further incident. The student reported that, during the taxi to the ramp, the rudder pedals "felt funny." He added that, as he and the flight instructor put a cover over the airplane, he noticed the NLG "looked funny." He asked a local mechanic to examine the airplane and then decided to send the airplane to a repair station to be repaired. During the airplane repair, it was revealed that the airplane sustained substantial damage to the engine mounts. The student reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. A review of recorded data from the automated weather observation station located on the airport revealed that, about 30 minutes before the accident, the wind was from 180° at 8 knots. The same weather observation station reported that, about 23 minutes after the accident, the wind was from 190° at 5 knots. The airplane landed on runway 22.
Factual narrative
The solo student pilot reported that, during the landing flare, he "felt an updraft" and the airplane landed hard. The airplane bounced, the nose landing gear struck the ground, bounced again, and the he performed a go-around. The student entered the traffic pattern and landed without further incident. The student reported that, during the taxi to the ramp, the rudder pedals "felt funny". He added that, as he and the flight instructor put a cover over the airplane, he noticed the nose landing gear "looked funny". He requested a local mechanic examine the airplane, and then decided to send the airplane to a repair station to be repaired. During the airplane repair, it was revealed that the airplane sustained substantial damage to the engine mounts. The student reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. A review of recorded data from the automated weather observation station located on the airport reported that, about 30 minutes before the accident, the wind was from 180° at 8 knots. The same weather observation station reported that, about 23 minutes after the accident, the wind was from 190° at 5 knots. The airplane landed on runway 22.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N547CT
- Reported as
- Flight Design Ctls (NO SERIES)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 08-01-18
- Built
- 2008
- Airframe hours
- 456
- Engine
- Rotax 912ULS, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Special light-sport (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 14, 2017
- Departed
- UUU · Newport, RI
- Destination
- UUU · Newport, RI
- Airport
- UUU · Newport State, runway 22, 2,999 × 75 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Unknown
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
- 68
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 140 total · 130 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 48 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.20 inHg
- Observed at
- KUUU
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on December 14, 2017, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 4.6 MB in all.