- Date
- November 13, 2022, 15:27, time zone not recorded
- Place
- San Jose, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N5171BCessna 152
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Loss of control in flight
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20221113019679A
- Case key
- 106288
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 unstabilized approach and improper landing flare, which resulted in a hard bounced landing.
Findings · 4
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The student pilot reported that, he was performing a solo flight with the intention of staying in the traffic pattern, when after takeoff he was distracted by noise in his headset. On the downwind leg, he unintentionally climbed above traffic pattern altitude while trying to resolve the issue. He then overshot the runway centerline on the final leg while still too high. He brought the power to idle and tried to lose altitude by performing a forward slip. The pilot stated he leveled off over the threshold and the airplane bounced twice after touching the runway. After attempting to regain pitch control, the airplane’s nose dropped, and the propeller and left wing impacted the runway. The left wing was substantially damaged. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5171B
- Reported as
- Cessna 152
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 15283787
- Built
- 1979
- Airframe hours
- 7,056
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235 SERIES, 115 hp, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Flying 20s Inc
- Registered owner
- Flying 20s Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility
- Departed
- KRHV · San Jose, CA
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- RHV · Reid-Hillview, runway 31L, 3,099 × 75 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- ADS-B
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
- 30
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 35 total · 35 in this make and model · 2 as pilot in command · 10 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 293° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 59 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.11 inHg
- Observed at
- KRHV
- METAR
- METAR KRHV 132247Z 29008 10SM SKC 15/02 A3011=
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on December 30, 2022, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.5 MB in all.
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 N5171B · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.