- Date
- September 4, 1999, 10:10 local (14:10 UTC)
- Place
- Lakeland, FL
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N172ANCessna 172N
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 22, 2000
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19990904041269A
- Case key
- 47270
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 student pilots improper use of brakes on landing rollout resulting in a loss of directional control and subsequent collision with a ditch. Contributing to the accident was the certified flight instructors improper supervision of the student pilot.
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 student pilot stated he made a normal landing to runway 23. He applied brakes on landing rollout and the airplane started to veer to the right. The CFI got on the flight controls and they both applied left rudder with negative results. The airplane continued off the right side of the runway, through the grass, and collided with a ditch. A functional check of the brakes revealed no deficiencies.
Factual narrative
On September 4, 1999, about 1010 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N172AN, registered to American Aviation, operating as a 14 CFR Part 91 instructional flight, experienced a loss of directional control at the Lakeland-Linder Regional Airport, Lakeland, Florida, on landing rollout and crashed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The commercial pilot flight instructor (CFI) and the student pilot reported no injuries. The flight originated from Brooksville, Florida, about 25 minutes before the accident.
The student pilot stated he was flying the airplane and he made a normal landing to runway 23. He applied brakes on landing rollout and the airplane started to veer to the right. The CFI got on the flight controls and they both applied left rudder. The airplane did not respond to the rudder input, and continued off the right side of the runway, through the grass, and collided with the ditch.
The CFI stated, "after being cleared to land on 23 LAL while on a right hand base leg, student pilot turns final, reduced power, applied full flaps, approached at 65 KIAS, flared, made soft touch down, approaching turn off applied brakes, aircraft began swerving to right-student and instructor applied left rudder-full left rudder-could not stop motion to right-entered grass, aircraft continued skidding to right and rolled into retaining ditch on right side of runway."
Examination of the runway by a police officer from the Lakeland Police Department revealed skid marks that started between the runway touchdown zone markings of the runway and curved to the west edge of the runway extending about 200 feet. Approximately the last 1/4 of the right tire marks exhibited skipping tire markings. There were 204 feet of skid marks through the grass from the west edge of the runway to the edge of the ditch.
Examination of the runway and aircraft by the FAA confirmed the Lakeland police officer's assessment of the crash site. A functional test of the airplane brake system revealed no deficiencies.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N172AN
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17272419
- Airframe hours
- 5,781
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-H2AD, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- American Aviation
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 9, 1999 · 98 hours before
- Departed
- BKV · Brooksville, FL
- Airport
- LAL · Lakeland-Linder Regional, runway 23, 5,000 × 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
- 72
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 3,246 total · 775 in this make and model · 3,161 as pilot in command · 213 in the last 90 days · 82 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 220° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 6 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 73 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LAL
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.