LAX00LA281

NTSB accident investigation · Cessna 180 · North Las Vegas, NV · July 28, 2000

Accident · No injuriesLimited investigationFinal report
Date
July 28, 2000, 09:10 local (16:10 UTC)
Place
North Las Vegas, NV
Injuries
2 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Approach
Aircraft
N3386DCessna 180
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report November 1, 2001
Report
Approved by Office Director
FAA report
20000728007639A
Case key
49847

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.

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Probable cause

The pilot's improper recovery from a bounced landing and subsequent failure to maintain directional control of the aircraft. Wind shear on landing approach was a factor in the accident.

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.

In flight encounter with weatherApproach - vfr pattern - final approach
Weather condition - windshearFactor
Hard landingLanding - flare/touchdown
Loss of control - on ground/waterLanding - roll
Recovery from bounced landing - improperPilot in commandCause
Directional control - not maintainedPilot in commandCause
On ground/water encounter with terrain/waterLanding - roll

Analysis

The pilot reported that he encountered wind shear and developed a high sink rate during an otherwise normal landing approach. A bounced landing resulted and, during the attempt to recover from the bounce, the aircraft bounced again and veered off the runway. The right-hand main landing gear separated and the aircraft came to rest off the runway. Tire marks on the runway indicated that the aircraft first landed about 1,600 feet from the approach end of the runway and then veered off the runway about 200 feet further down the runway. Marks in the dirt indicated that the airplane then paralleled the runway for about 500 feet before becoming airborne again and travelling another 250 feet before coming to rest.

Factual narrative

On July 28, 2000, at 0910 hours Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 180, N3386D, was substantially damaged during a hard landing at North Las Vegas, Nevada. The commercial pilot and one passenger were not injured. The personal flight departed from the French Valley airport at Murrieta/Temecula, California at 0715. The flight was operated by the owner under 14 CFR Part 91, and no flight plan was filed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and included light and variable winds and a 5,000-foot density altitude.

The pilot reported that he encountered wind shear and developed a high sink rate during an otherwise normal landing approach to runway 7. A bounced landing resulted and, during the attempt to recover from the bounce, the aircraft bounced again and veered to the right off the runway. The right-hand main landing gear separated and the aircraft came to rest off the runway.

An inspector from the Federal Aviation Administration Las Vegas Flight Standards District Office reported that tire marks on the runway indicated that the aircraft first landed about 1,600 feet from the approach end of runway 7, and then veered off the runway to the southeast about 200 feet further down the runway. Marks in the dirt indicated that the airplane then paralleled the runway for about 500 feet before becoming airborne again. The airplane finally came to rest about 250 feet further east on a southerly heading.

Aircraft

Registration
N3386D
Reported as
Cessna 180
Category
Airplane
Serial number
32184
Airframe hours
2,500
Engine
Continental O-470K, 230 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Registered owner
Ross J. Capawana
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Last inspection
Annual · June 1, 2000 · 15 hours before
Departed
F70 · Temecula, CA
Destination
VGT
Airport
VGT · North Las Vegas, runway 7, 5,005 × 75 ft, asphalt

Flight crew

As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.

Role
Pilot
Age
61
Certificate
Commercial
Airplane ratings
Multi-engine sea, Single-engine land, Multi-engine land, Single-engine sea
Instrument ratings
Airplane
Medical
Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
Seat
Left
Flight hours
5,200 total · 250 in this make and model · 4,800 as pilot in command · 30 in the last 90 days · 10 in the last 30 days

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
Variable at 4 knots
Visibility
15 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
None
Temperature
201 °F, dew point 81 °F
Altimeter
29.00 inHg
Observed at
VGT

Docket · 2

The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 10, 2001, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 459 KB 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.