- Date
- March 3, 2008, 12:00 local (18:00 UTC)
- Place
- Centre, AL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N203GTCessna 172N
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 31, 2008
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Birmingham FSDO -09
- Case key
- 67525
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 improper landing flare, resulting in a hard landing.
Findings · 1
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The student pilot stated that this was his first solo cross-country flight to the Centre Municipal Airport, Centre, Alabama. He said that he landed the airplane hard, and it bounced twice before settling on the runway. After shutting the engine down, he exited the airplane and noticed that the nose tire was flat. Examination of the airplane by an FAA inspector revealed that the firewall and engine mounts were buckled.
Factual narrative
The student pilot stated that this was his first solo cross-country flight to the Centre Municipal Airport, Centre, Alabama. He said that he landed the airplane hard, and it bounced twice before settling on the runway. After shutting the engine down, he exited the airplane and noticed that the nose tire was flat. Examination of the airplane by an FAA inspector revealed that the firewall and engine mounts were buckled.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N203GT
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 172 72403
- Airframe hours
- 5,576
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-H2AD, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Yelow Jacket Flying Club, Incorporated
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 1, 2007 · 100 hours before
- Departed
- FTY · Atlanta, GA
- Destination
- C22 · Centre, AL
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- C22 · Centre Muni, runway 27, 3,401 × 80 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
- Student pilot
- Age
- 20
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 53 total · 53 in this make and model · 10 as pilot in command · 12 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 54 °F, dew point 43 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.23 inHg
- Observed at
- KGAD, 25 nm away