- Date
- September 12, 2007, 19:30 local (Sep 13, 2007, 01:30 UTC)
- Place
- Helena, MT
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N7221QCessna 172L
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed · report October 31, 2007
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20070912022719A
- Case key
- 66764
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
unexpected collision with birds on short final that damaged the airplane wing structure.
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
According to the pilot, as he was about 50 feet above ground level on short final over the threshold, the right wing leading edge of the airplane struck several birds. There were no significant changes in how the flight controls felt on subsequent inputs, and the airplane landed without further incident. The pilot stated that the flight departed the airport about 10 minutes prior to the collision, and they were conducting touch-and-go takeoffs and landings in moderate crosswind conditions. He stated that there were no NOTAM's in place warning of birds in the immediate area of the airport, and he did not have time to maneuver away from the birds.
Factual narrative
According to the pilot, as he was about 50 feet above ground level on short final over the threshold, the right wing leading edge of the airplane struck several birds. There were no significant changes in how the flight controls felt on subsequent inputs, and the airplane landed without further incident. The pilot stated that the flight departed the airport about 10 minutes prior to the collision, and they were conducting touch-and-go takeoffs and landings in moderate crosswind conditions. He stated that there were no NOTAM's in place warning of birds in the immediate area of the airport, and he did not have time to maneuver away from the birds.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7221Q
- Reported as
- Cessna 172L
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17260521
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Sleeping Giant Flying Club
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
- Departed
- HLN · Helena, MT
- Destination
- HLN · Helena, MT
- Airport
- HLN · Helena Regional Airport, runway 27, 9,000 × 150 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
- 54
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- April 1, 2007
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,850 total · 1,400 in this make and model · 30 in the last 90 days · 10 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Wind
- 320° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 3,400 ft broken
- Temperature
- 48 °F, dew point 37 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.17 inHg
- Observed at
- HLN
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.