- Date
- May 12, 2007, 16:00 local (22:00 UTC)
- Place
- St. George, UT
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N5285HCessna 172M
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 25, 2007
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration FSDO
- FAA report
- 20070512006989A
- Case key
- 65783
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 pilot's inadequate compensation for a gusting crosswind and his failure to maintain directional control.
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 veered off of runway 16 and ground looped during the landing roll in strong crosswind conditions. The pilot stated in a written report that he checked the AWOS as he approached the airport and noted a direct crosswind of higher velocity than made him comfortable. He continued to circle north of the airport until he observed the winds drop to 19 knots. He decided to enter the pattern for runway 16 and perform a go-around to, "feel the winds." After a successful go-around, he elected to come around the pattern again and attempt a landing. The pilot said, "I set a little crab on final the second time around and executed a very smooth descent, flare and landing. Between five hundred feet and one thousand feet after touchdown, the airplane started to turn right, and I couldn't apply enough left rudder to stop it." The airplane departed the runway and the propeller struck a taxiway light and the left wing tip made contact with the ground. The airplane came to rest 30 feet beyond the runway edge. At 1555, the airport's AWOS reported winds of 250 degrees at 21 knots, gusting to 27 knots. The Pilot's Operating Handbook for a 1976 Cessna 172M states that, "The maximum allowable crosswind velocity is dependent on pilot capability as well as aircraft limitations. With average pilot technique, direct crosswinds of 15 knots can be handled with safety." The pilot stated that the airplane and engine had no mechanical failures or malfunctions during the flight.
Factual narrative
On May 12, 2007, about 1600 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 172M, N5285H, collided with terrain at St. George Municipal Airport (SGU), St. George, Utah. The owner, Spanish Fork Flying Service, operated the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The private pilot and two passengers were not injured; the airplane sustained substantial damage. The cross-country personal flight departed Spanish Fork-Springville Airport (U77), Spanish Fork, Utah, about 1330. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed; no flight plan had been filed.
The pilot stated in a written report that he checked the Automated Weather Observation System (AWOS) as he approached St. George, and noted a direct crosswind of higher velocity than made him comfortable. He continued to circle north of the airport, until he observed the winds drop to 19 knots. He decided to enter the pattern for runway 16 and perform a go-around to "feel the winds." After a successful go-around, he elected to attempt a landing, "I set a little crab on final the second time around and executed a very smooth descent, flare and landing. Between five hundred feet and one thousand feet after touchdown, the airplane started to turn right, and I couldn't apply enough left rudder to stop it." The airplane departed the runway; the propeller struck a taxiway light, and the left wing tip made contact with the ground. The airplane came to rest 30 feet beyond the runway edge.
At 1555, the St. George AWOS reported winds of 250 degrees at 21 knots gusting to 27 knots.
The Pilot's Operating Handbook for a 1976 Cessna 172M states that in a crosswind landing, "Although the crab or combination method of drift correction may be used, the wing-low method gives best control"; "The maximum allowable crosswind velocity is dependent on pilot capability as well as aircraft limitations. With average pilot technique, direct crosswinds of 15 knots can be handled with safety."
The pilot stated that the airplane and engine had no mechanical failures or malfunctions during the flight.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5285H
- Reported as
- Cessna 172M
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17265395
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Spanish Fork Flying Service
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal; Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · January 1, 2007 · 38 hours before
- Departed
- U77 · Spanish Fork, UT
- Destination
- SGU · St George, UT
- Airport
- SGU · St George Muni, runway 16, 6,606 × 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
- Pilot
- Age
- 23
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2
- Flight hours
- 128 total · 5 in this make and model · 29 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 250° at 21 knots, gusting 27
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 97 °F, dew point 30 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.85 inHg
- Observed at
- SGU
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 N5285H · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.