MIA04FA007

Witnesses stated that the airplane had just taken off from runway 18, and during the initial climb they saw it in a nose-high pitch attitude. They further stated that about 75 to 100 feet in the air they saw the airplane suddenly turn to the east, and descend straight down, impacting the ground. Examination of the wreckage showed that the airplane's flaps had been set to 20 degrees, and no preaccident anomalies were noted to exist with the airplane's airframe, flight controls, or engine. At the time of the accident, the student had accumulated a total of 39.7 hours total flight experience, and he was conducted his third solo flight. The student's flight instructor had specified in an endorsement he had provided to the student for solo flight, that solo flights be performed in a Cessna 172 , and that the flights be conducted at the Olive Branch Airport, when crosswinds were less than 5 knots. The reported surface winds at the Olive Branch Airport, Olive Branch, Mississippi, were from 270 degrees at 8 knots, gusting to 14 knots. The pilot's operating handbook for the airplane specifies that flap settings in excess of 10 degrees are not approved for takeoff.

History of flight

On October 21, 2003, about 0910 central daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N75510, registered to and operated by Douglas Aviation Inc., as a Title 14 CFR Part 91 instructional flight, crashed in Olive Branch, Mississippi. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The student pilot received fatal injuries, and the airplane incurred substantial damage. The flight was originating at the time of the accident.

According to the owner of Douglas Aviation Inc., the flight school operator with whom the student had been receiving flight instruction, the student was flying the airplane in the traffic pattern practicing takeoffs and landings as part of his solo training for the FAA private pilot certificate, when the accident occurred. He further stated that the training session had begun about 0800, and student had flown the airplane to the practice area prior to returning to fly in the traffic pattern. At the time of the accident, the pilot was conducting his third unsupervised solo flight.

Witnesses at the airport stated that the airplane had just taken off from runway 18 and during the initial climb they observed it in a nose high pitch attitude, at an altitude of about 75 to 100 feet. They further stated that the airplane suddenly turned to the east, and descended straight down, impacting the ground.

Three firefighters who were at the nearby airport fire station said that they were outside at the time and they saw the airplane in a steep nose-up attitude, when all of a sudden it banked "almost inverted" to the east. They further stated that the airplane moved very little as it was turning away from them and the nose of the airplane dropped suddenly and the airplane disappeared behind a row of trees. One firefighter said the wings appeared to be almost level just prior to the airplane disappearing from view.

The airplane came to rest inverted on a northeasterly heading between runway 18 and taxiway A, about 1,800 feet north of the departure end of the runway.

Personnel information

The student held an FAA third class medical/student pilot certificate, issued on July 15, 2003, with the stated limitation "Holder shall wear corrective lenses".

According to records obtained from the flight school, the student had initially begun taking flying lessons on November 1, 2001, and he had stopped taking lessons on July 23, 2002 at which time he had acquired 22.3 hours of total flight experience. Records showed that he resumed flight training on August 25, 2003.

Records showed that on October 2, 2003, the student pilot's flight instructor had provided the student with an endorsement for him to fly a Cessna 172 solo, with the stated requirement that he should consult a certified flight instructor prior to making a flight. An additional restriction specified in the endorsement was that flights be conducted at the Olive Branch Airport, and when crosswind speeds were less than 5 knots.

According to information in student pilot's logbook, at the time of the accident, he had accumulated 39.7 total hours of flight time, 1.3 of which were flown solo. The last entries in his logbook were for 0.8 hours of solo flight on October 16, 2003, and .5 solo hours were flown on October 2, 2003.

According to information obtained during the course of the investigation, the student pilot had been flying the airplane for 1.1 hours when the accident occurred.

Aircraft information

N75510 is a 1977 Cessna 172N, serial number 17267771. Records showed that the airplane was acquired by Douglas Aviation Inc. on June 10, 1994. On March 6, 2003, the airplane had received an annual inspection, and on October 14, 2003, the airplane had received its last 100-hour inspection, at which time it had accumulated a total flight time of 9,395 hours on the airframe.

The airplane was equipped with a 160-horsepower Lycoming O-320-H2AD engine, serial number L-5825-76T. At the time of the accident, the engine had accumulated 4,413 hours.

Meteorological information

Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The Olive Branch Airport, Olive Branch, Mississippi, 0920, surface weather observation was, wind from 270 degrees at 8 knots gusting up to 14 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, sky clear, temperature 68 degrees F, dew point temperature 57 degrees F, altimeter setting 30.05 inHg.

Wreckage and impact

The initial impact occurred about 200 feet west and 1,700 feet north of the departure end of runway 18, at the Olive Branch Airport. The airplane came to rest inverted, 1,830 feet north of the departure end of runway 18, with the left wing tip touching the west edge of the runway and the fuselage pointing in the direction of 060 degrees. The wreckage path was about 273 feet long and oriented on a magnetic heading of 045 degrees.

The initial impact ground scar was oriented on a heading of 85 degrees and was 25 feet in long, with the scarring being consistent with contact having been made with the airplane's left wing tip. As the ground scars progressed along the debris path, next was a propeller slash, followed my scars that were consistent with impact from the forward section of the aircraft's fuselage and its main landing gear. Impact signatures, ground scars and the crush angle at the front-bottom portion of the fuselage showed that the airplane had impacted the ground at about a 40-degree nose-down pitch angle.

A postcrash fire had not occurred, and all damage at the scene was consistent with that an impact with terrain. Successive scars were consistent with the right wing having struck the ground next, having become inverted, and sliding to its resting position at the edge of the runway.

All components necessary to sustain flight were found in the immediate vicinity of the accident site. The flight control surfaces had remained attached to the airframe except for a portion of the left aileron, and control continuity was established from the cockpit to each control surface.

The propeller was separated from the engine and was located about 10 feet to the west of the fuselage. The crankshaft was broken aft of the propeller flange and the separation surfaces displayed signatures consistent with shear and tension overloads. One propeller blade displayed a gradual bend starting at the blade root and it had twisted towards a lower pitch angle. The other propeller blade displayed abrasion to the painted surfaces at the tip and torsional bending along its entire length. The spinner had incurred impact damaged on one side, and it had been torn at the attach points.

The firewall had been crushed aft and it remained connected to the engine by two damaged engine mount tubes. The bottom of the fuselage just behind the main landing gear mounts had buckled, and the remaining aft section of the fuselage had been displaced to the left. The tailcone had separated from the forward section of the fuselage at the aft bulkhead of the baggage compartment. The empennage was positioned over the left wing.

Both doors remained attached to the fuselage. The left main gear leg remained attached to the fuselage, and the mounting structure was broken. The right main gear was displaced and displayed little damage.

During an examination of the cockpit the primer was found to be in and locked. The ignition switch was found to be off, and it had been secured at the scene. The alternator/master switch was "ON". The felt fuel tank indicated 0, and the right fuel tank was full of fuel. The oil temperature, oil pressure, ammeter, and suction and engine tachometer rpm and airspeed gauges all indicated 0. The engine tachometer indicated 9,410.6. . The engine primer was observed in the "locked" position and the fuel selector was observed in the "Both" position. The fuel selector was set to "BOTH." The directional gyro indicated 330 degrees, the vertical speed indicator showed a negative 1,800 f