- Date
- April 9, 2004, 11:10 local (15:10 UTC)
- Place
- Westfield, MA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N5425KCessna 172P
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 30, 2004
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20040409005689A
- Case key
- 59029
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 pilot's improper flare and his failure to maintain aircraft control while landing.
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
During the student pilot's first solo landing, as the airplane neared the runway, it climbed slightly and dropped "very fast" back to the runway surface. The airplane touched down hard on the runway, collapsing the landing gear assembly and buckling the firewall. The airplane veered left and came to rest in a grass field. The student pilot did not report any malfunctions with the airplane.
Factual narrative
On April 9, 2004, at 1110 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172P, N5425K, was substantially damaged while landing at the Barnes Municipal Airport (BAF), Westfield, Massachusetts. The student pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local instructional flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
According to the student pilot, the accident flight was her first solo flight.
After completing one circuit in the traffic pattern, the student pilot returned to land on runway 02, a 9,000-foot long, 150-foot wide asphalt runway. As the airplane neared the runway, it climbed slightly and dropped "very fast" back to the runway surface. The airplane touched down hard on the runway, collapsing the landing gear assembly and buckling the firewall. The airplane veered left and came to rest in a grass field.
The student pilot did not report any malfunctions with the airplane.
The wind conditions about the time of the accident were from 360 degrees at 8 knots.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5425K
- Reported as
- Cessna 172P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17274106
- Airframe hours
- 2,511
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-D2J, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Five Star Flight Academy
- Registered owner
- Stephen M Hayden
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · April 1, 2004 · 9 hours before
- Departed
- BAF
- Airport
- BAF · Barnes Municipal, runway 02, 9,000 × 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
- Student pilot
- Age
- 20
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 13 total · 7 in this make and model · 5 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 6,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 55 °F, dew point 32 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.72 inHg
- Observed at
- BAF
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N5425K · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.