- Date
- July 27, 2004, 13:29 local (20:29 UTC)
- Place
- Big Bear City, CA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N65615Cessna 172P
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 29, 2004
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA FSDO, Riverside, CA
- FAA report
- 20040727015529A
- Case key
- 59773
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 instructor's inadequate compensation for wind conditions and delayed decision to perform a go-around. Contributing factors were wind gusts, windshear, and an excessive descent rate.
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 airplane collided with bushes and terrain during an attempted landing on a temporary runway. The runway is normally the south taxiway. It is the designated runway during major repairs to the main runway 08/26, and is marked with a displaced threshold and normal striping. The airplane landed prior to the displaced threshold. The instructor took the controls during the base leg turn when the student pilot voiced some concerns about his ability to land the airplane due to his lack of familiarity with the airport and the turbulence. The instructor reported gusty winds (280 degrees at 9-14), and severe windshear that was not reflected during his preflight weather briefing, or by the Unicom advisory service. The AWOS was out of service. The instructor put in an additional 10 degrees of flaps after clearing some trees. Upon encountering a high rate of sink he applied full power for a go-around and retracted the flaps to 10 degrees. He reported that the airplane was moving violently down and left, and ground contact was inevitable. The instructor reported that there were no mechanical issues with the airplane.
Factual narrative
On July 27, 2004, at 1329 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 172P, N65615, collided with bushes and terrain during landing at Big Bear City Airport, Big Bear City, California. Cruise Air Aviation, Inc., Ramona, California, was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. Neither the instructor pilot nor student was injured; the airplane was substantially damaged. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the cross-country instructional flight, and a visual flight plan had been filed. The flight originated at Ramona at 1235.
The airplane was landing on a temporary runway (26), which is normally the south taxiway, during the major repairs to the main runway 08/26. The temporary runway was marked with a displaced threshold and normal striping. The airplane landed prior to the displaced threshold. The instructor reported gusty winds and extreme windshear, which was not reflected during his preflight weather briefing, or by the Unicom advisory service. The Automated Weather Observation System (AWOS) was out of service.
The instructor reported that during the base leg turn the student pilot voiced some concerns about his ability to land the airplane due to his lack of familiarity with the airport and the turbulence. The instructor took the controls and lined up with the runway. According to the CFI, he asked the Unicom about the wind conditions and was told "280 degrees at 9-14 knots." Additionally, the Unicom advisory service reported that the winds were "quirky or freaky."
The instructor put in an additional 10 degrees of flaps after clearing some trees. Upon encountering a high rate of sink he applied full power for a go-around and retracted the flaps to 10 degrees. He reported that the airplane was moving violently down and left, and ground contact was inevitable.
The instructor pilot reported that there were no mechanical issues with the airplane.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N65615
- Reported as
- Cessna 172P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17275786
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Cruise Air Aviation, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Cruise Air
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- L39 · Ramona, CA
- Destination
- L35 · Big Bear City, AK
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- L35 · Big Bear City, runway 26
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
- 45
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Last flight review
- February 1, 2004
- Flight hours
- 926 total · 892 in this make and model · 103 in the last 90 days · 55 in the last 30 days
- Role
- Student pilot
- Age
- 25
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3
- Flight hours
- 30 total · 30 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 280° at 9 knots, gusting 14
- Visibility
- 25 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.02 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 N65615 · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.