HOPEDALE, MA, USA
N738NL
Cessna 172N
The student pilot returned to his home airport with his flight instructor. The student attempted the landing with a 50 degree left crosswind of 12 to 21 knots. The airplane bounced, 'turned into the wind', and departed the left side of the runway. The flight instructor assumed the flight controls but was unable to recover the airplane before it crossed a fence line parallel to the runway, struck the ground, and nosed over.
On November 15, 1999, at 0900 eastern standard time, a Cessna 172N, N738NL, sustained substantial damage during collision with terrain following a bounced landing at the Hopedale Industrial Park Airport (1B6), Hopedale, Massachusetts. The certificated flight instructor and student pilot were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the instructional flight that originated at 1B6, approximately 0745. No flight plan was filed for the flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. In a written statement, the flight instructor said: "My student and I entered the traffic pattern at 1B6 on a 45 [degree] angle to the downwind of runway 36 after announcing our intentions on 122.8. We discussed traffic pattern procedures. We reduced power and added 10 [degrees] of flaps. While on downwind, we continued to review landing checklist. We turned base leg and added 20 [degrees] of flaps, [and] trimmed the airplane for an approach speed of 65 knots. We then turned final and discussed crosswind landing procedures. We reduced power, added 30 [degrees] of flaps, and continued with an approach speed of 65 knots. We bounced on landing, with an insufficient amount of right rudder, and the airplane turned into the wind. "I took control of the airplane and added power in an attempt to control the airplane and get it back over the runway. With an insufficient amount of airspeed, we touched down up on the other side of the fence. The airplane then flipped over." In a written statement, the student pilot reported: "Entered traffic pattern, turned base, added flaps, turned final, dropped to idle, [and] added last of flaps. Wind slightly gusty. Touched down just to right of centerline [and] hit by gust of wind. Instructor attempted to correct, hit by more gusts. Instructor added power, then crashed. Gusts appeared too strong to correct from." In a telephone interview, the flight instructor said, "We bounced approximately 8 feet into the air. We didn't bounce that hard, so it appeared that we were assisted by the wind. Over the fence, the wind diminished and the airplane settled to the ground." The flight instructor said that he did not receive a weather briefing prior to departure. He said that he made a weather determination based on the "Weather Channel", the anemometer at the airport, and monitoring the Automated Terminal Information Services (ATIS) at area airports. The flight instructor stated that after an hour in the training area, the wind speeds increased, and he decided to return to his home airport. When questioned about the airworthiness and the performance of the airplane, the pilot responded: "The aircraft was performing fine. It just came out of a 100-hour inspection. I've never had a problem with the airplane." The flight instructor reported approximately 400 hours of flight experience, of which 150 was in the Cessna 172. He said the student pilot had approximately 7 hours of flight experience. Winds reported at Pawtucket, Rhode Island, 10 miles south of Hopedale were from 310 degrees at 12 knots gusting to 21 knots.
was the student pilot's improper flare that resulted in a bounced landing and the flight instructor's delay in taking remedial action.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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