- Date
- March 9, 2007, 15:45 local (22:45 UTC)
- Place
- Phoenix, AZ
- Injuries
- 2 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N4663DCessna 172N
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 29, 2007
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20070309003819A
- Case key
- 65399
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 failure to maintain airspeed, which resulted in an inadvertent stall and uncontrolled descent into terrain during landing. A contributing factor was the pilot's distracted attention due to the inaccurate flap indicator.
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 pilot was landing at his destination at the end of a cross-country flight. While turning onto final, the airplane was higher than normal and he extended the flaps to 30 degrees. The airplane was not descending normally and he looked at the flap indicator, which showed 20 degrees, although the selector arm was at 30 degrees. The pilot then moved the selector further down, attempting to obtain 30 degrees of flaps. The airplane rapidly slowed, the stall warning horn sounded, and the airplane veered sharply to the left. The pilot applied full throttle, retracted the flaps, and then the airplane impacted the ground. According to the aircraft recovery personnel, when the flaps were selected, the appropriate flap extension would occur. However, the indicator read 10 degrees off.
Factual narrative
The pilot was landing at his destination at the end of a cross-country flight. While turning onto final, the airplane was higher than normal and he extended the flaps to 30 degrees. The airplane was not descending normally and he looked at the flap indicator, which showed 20 degrees, although the selector arm was at 30 degrees. The pilot then moved the selector further down, attempting to obtain 30 degrees of flaps. The airplane rapidly slowed, the stall warning horn sounded, and the airplane veered sharply to the left. The pilot applied full throttle, retracted the flaps, and then the airplane impacted the ground. According to the aircraft recovery personnel, when the flaps were selected, the appropriate flap extension would occur. However, the indicator read 10 degrees off.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4663D
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17272326
- Engine
- Textron Lycoming O-320-H2AD, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Westwind School of Aeronautics
- Registered owner
- Westwind Aviation, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- TUC · Tucson, AZ
- Destination
- DVT · PHX Deer Valley, AZ
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- DVT · PHX Deer Valley AP, runway 25L, 8,208 × 100 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
- 51
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 1
- Flight hours
- 144 total · 7 in this make and model · 18 in the last 90 days · 10 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 230° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 6 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 70 °F
- Observed at
- DVT
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.