# NTSB NYC02LA145: Cessna 172N, N733NQ, Middletown, RI, July 14, 2002 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: July 14, 2002, 12:40 local (16:40 UTC) - Place: Middletown, RI - Coordinates: 41.532775, -71.281669 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=41.5328&lon=-71.2817&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report January 16, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 55263 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=NYC02LA145 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/55263/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=55263 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC02LA145 ## Probable cause The pilot's improper flare. A factor was the shifting wind. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Hard landing, landing - flare/touchdown - flare - improper, pilot in command (cause) - weather condition - sudden windshift (contributing factor) ## Analysis The airplane was lined up with the centerline of runway 22, and "the numbers" were in the center of the pilot's windscreen. The pilot's "approach profile" was "normal", and the VASI lights were red over white. The pilot lowered the flaps to 30 degrees, and "headed for the numbers." He noticed wind gusts as he approached the runway. As the airplane passed over the numbers, the pilot reduced engine power to idle, and began to level off. The airplane was 5-6 feet above the runway, when the pilot felt it begin to sink. He applied back pressure to the yoke, and the airplane's nose pitched up higher than normal, which the pilot attributed to a gust of wind. The pilot released back pressure in an attempt to level the airplane, but was "now too slow and the nose sank, causing the nose wheel to hit the ground very hard and the aircraft bounced back up." The pilot maintained the engine power at idle, and the airplane bounced once more before finally landing. Winds were from 210 degrees true, variable 160 to 320 degrees true, at 7 knots. The pilot had logged 97 hours of total flight time, with 15 hours in make and model, and 1.7 hours in the previous 90 days. ## Factual narrative On July 14, 2002, about 1240 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N733NQ, was substantially damaged during a hard landing at Newport State Airport (UUU), Middletown, Rhode Island. The certificated private pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time. No flight plan had been filed for the flight, from Theodore Francis Green State Airport (PVD), Warwick, Rhode Island, to Newport State. The personal flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. According to the pilot, the airplane was lined up with the centerline of runway 22, and "the numbers" were in the center of his windscreen. The pilot's "approach profile" was "normal", and the VASI lights were red over white. As the airplane approached the runway threshold, the pilot lowered the flaps to 30 degrees, and "headed for the numbers." The pilot noticed wind gusts as he approached the runway. As the airplane passed over the numbers, the pilot reduced engine power to idle, and began to level off. The airplane was 5-6 feet above the runway, when the pilot felt it begin to sink. He applied back pressure to the yoke, and the airplane's nose pitched up higher than normal, which the pilot attributed to a gust of wind. The pilot released back pressure in an attempt to level the airplane, but was "now too slow and the nose sank, causing the nose wheel to hit the ground very hard and the aircraft bounced back up." The pilot maintained the engine power at idle, and the airplane bounced once more before finally landing. Weather, recorded at the airport at 1253, included winds from 210 degrees true, variable 160 to 320 degrees true, at 7 knots. The pilot had logged 97 hours of total flight time, with 15 hours in make and model, and 1.7 hours in the previous 90 days. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N733NQ](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N733NQ), registered now, S/N 17268423, built 1976 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 172N - Registry model: [Cessna 172N](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172n) (registry code 2072434) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-320 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (registry code 41508, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 17268423 - Airframe hours: 2166 - Engines: Lycoming O-320 160 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: New Horizon Aviation - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: 100 hour, June 26, 2002, 42 hours before - Departed: PVD, Warwick, RI - Destination: UUU, Middletown, RI - Airport: UUU, Newport State Airport, runway 22, 2,999 × 75 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 40; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; last flight review November 18, 2001; seat: left; flight hours: 97 total, 15 in this make and model, 57 as pilot in command, 1 in the last 90 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 210° at 7 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 77 °F, dew point 63 °F - Altimeter: 30.04 inHg - Observed at: UUU ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20020714016029A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020714016029A), Jul 14, 2002: Cessna 172N, Newport, RI, No damage. (-23) Pilot rented aircraft from horizon aviation in warwick, RI and flew to Newport, RI. Upon landing the pilot porpoised and struck the propeller on the… ## Docket (3 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on November 5, 2002, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=55263. 417 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 315 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40170055&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Master.PDF - Pilot Statement (item 2, .PDF, 68 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40170056&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%20Statement-Master.PDF - Memo for Record (item 3, .PDF, 34 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40461748&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Memo%20for%20Record-Master.PDF From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.