# NTSB NYC03CA167: Cessna 172P, N62152, Plainfield, CT, July 25, 2003 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: July 25, 2003, 13:00 local (17:00 UTC) - Place: Plainfield, CT - Coordinates: 41.690277, -72.864723 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=41.6903&lon=-72.8647&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report March 2, 2004 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 57568 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=NYC03CA167 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/57568/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC03CA167 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain directional control, which resulted in a collision with a ditch. A factor in this accident was the crosswind condition. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - on ground/water, landing - roll - weather condition - crosswind (contributing factor) - directional control - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, landing - roll - terrain condition - ditch ## Analysis The student pilot was landing on runway 02, 3,612-foot-long, 75-foot-wide, asphalt runway. He reported a crosswind of about 90 degrees from the left, with winds at 8 to 10 knots. After touchdown, the airplane veered off the right side of the runway, struck a ditch and came to rest inverted. The pilot did not report and mechanical malfunctions. A nearby airport reported the winds from 280 degrees at 10 knots. ## Factual narrative On July 25, 2003, about 1300 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172P, N62152, was substantially damaged while landing at Robertson Field, Plainville, Connecticut. The certificated student pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the solo instructional flight. No flight plan had been filed for the flight that originated from Groton, Connecticut, and was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. According to the pilot's written statement: "I was approaching to land at Robertson Field on runway 2 with a slight crosswind. I touched down gently in the center of the runway, then immediately began to skid to my right. The plane was mostly on the left main wheel while skidding. I then hit the grass which turned me into the ditch and the airplane flipped over, landing upside down in the ditch...." A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector who visited the accident site reported that skid marks were visible on the runway. The marks started about 1/3 of the way down the runway, and over a distance of about 250 to 300 feet, veered to the right and departed the runway. The airplane came to rest beyond where the skid marks departed the runway. In an interview with an FAA inspector, the pilot reported that he was returning from a solo cross-country flight. Upon arrival at Plainville, the winds were a crosswind from the left, near 90 degrees, at 8 to 10 knots. The pilot stated he did not experience any mechanical malfunctions. The 1251 weather observation from Bradley Field (BDL), Windsor Locks, Connecticut, which was located 16.6 nautical miles northeast of the accident site, reported that the winds were from 280 degrees at 10 knots. According to data from the FAA, runway 02 was 3,612 feet long, and 75 feet wide, with an asphalt surface. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N62152](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N62152-2004-03-12), registration cancelled 2004-03-12, S/N 17275221 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 172P - Registry model: [Cessna 172P](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172p) (registry code 2072436) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 172P75221 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-D2J reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Instructional, Part 91 - Operator: Interstate Aviation - Registered owner: Christopher D. Baylor - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal - Departed: GON, Groton, CT - Destination: 4B8, Plainfield - Airport: 4B8, Robertson Field, runway 02 ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 18; student; medical: class 1; flight hours: 35 total, 35 in this make and model, 9 as pilot in command, 19 in the last 90 days, 10 in the last 30 days, 3 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day ## 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 20030725017859A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030725017859A), Jul 25, 2003: Cessna 172P, Plainville, CT, Substantial damage. (-23) A Cessna aircraft model CE-172P registration number N62152 landed on runway 02 at Plainville, CT (4B8) experienced a northwest crosswind at 1300 EDT.… 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.