- Date
- July 8, 2018, 16:00 local (20:00 UTC)
- Place
- Beaver Falls, PA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N984BTCessna 172
- Defining event
- Landing-aborted after touchdown: Abnormal runway contact
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 26, 2019
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- General Aviation Accidents
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20180708015889A
- Case key
- 98118
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 bounced landing.
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 solo student pilot reported that her first approach was unstable, and she aborted the landing. During the subsequent approach, while on the downwind leg, the tower controller advised her to be cautious of wake turbulence. She continued the approach, and during landing, the airplane bounced twice. She attempted to abort the landing, but the propeller struck the ground. She then taxied the airplane to a taxiway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the forward lower fuselage longerons and bulkheads. The student reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Factual narrative
The solo student pilot reported that her first approach was unstable, and she aborted the landing. During the subsequent approach, while on the downwind leg, the tower controller advised her to be cautious of wake turbulence. She continued the approach and during landing, the airplane bounced twice. She attempted to abort the landing, but the propeller struck the ground. She discontinued the aborted landing, and she established a landing roll. She was able to taxi the airplane to parking. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the forward lower fuselage longerons and bulkheads. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N984BT
- Reported as
- Cessna 172 (R)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17280431
- Built
- 1998
- Engine
- Lycoming IO360 SER, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Moore Aviation Inc.
- Registered owner
- Moore Aviation Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- GKJ · Meadville, PA
- Destination
- GKJ · Meadville, PA
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- BVI · Beaver County, runway 10, 4,501 × 100 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
- Pilot
- Age
- 18
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 70.4 total · 70.4 in this make and model · 2.9 as pilot in command · 14.8 in the last 90 days · 10.3 in the last 30 days · 1.3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 130° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 66 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.37 inHg
- Observed at
- KBVI, 1 nm away
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on May 13, 2019, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.8 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.