SAN JOSE, CA, USA
N739HE
Cessna 172N
On the student pilot's second landing of his third solo instructional flight, he had been cleared for the option. He remembers feeling fatigued and disoriented before turning to the base leg; however, once he turned on final he felt normal again. He stated that he configured the aircraft for landing, but that his airspeed was high and the aircraft was descending at a rapid rate. The student said the aircraft landed hard and became airborne again. He attempted to recover from the hard landing, but the aircraft continued to porpoise down the runway until the nose gear collapsed.
On November 28, 1997, at 1300 hours Pacific standard time, a Cessna 172N, N739HE, sustained substantial damage when it veered off runway 31R while practicing touch-and-go landings at the Reid-Hillview Airport, San Jose, California. The aircraft landed, porpoised, and came to rest with the nose gear collapsed between runways. The student pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The aircraft was being operated by Nice Air. Visual meteorological conditions existed for the local solo instructional flight and no flight plan was filed. The student pilot reported that this was his third solo flight in the pattern and that there were no problems on the first touch-and-go. On the second landing he was again cleared for the option. He reported that he felt fatigued and disoriented on downwind-to-base. On base-to-final he felt normal again and configured the aircraft for landing. He stated that his airspeed was high, he was descending at a rapid rate, and had a ". . .hard time controlling the airplane." He reported that the airplane struck the runway and became airborne again. He attempted to recover from the hard landing, but the aircraft continued to porpoise down the runway. The aircraft came to rest and the tower advised him to shut the engine down. An airport truck towed the aircraft back to the operator's base. An Federal Aviation Administration inspector from the San Jose Flight Standards District Office, examined the aircraft on scene. No abnormalities were noted with the aircraft.
the student pilot's failure to maintain an appropriate airspeed and proper rate of descent, and his misjudged landing flare, which led to an uncontrolled porpoise and eventual collapse of the landing gear.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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