IMMOKALEE, FL, USA
N238DM
Bellanca 8KCAB
According to the pilot while on final approach to the airport, and about 25 to 50 feet above the ground, 'the bottom dropped out coming down hard on [the] landing gear 6 feet short of runway. Ground was soft, pitching the plane on its nose.' According to the FAA inspector's statement the pilot '...did not report any mechanical problems.'
On April 16, 2000, about 1100 eastern daylight time, a Bellanca 8KCAB, N238DM, owned by a private individual, impacted with the ground while landing at the Immokalee Airport, Immokalee, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time, and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight. The airplane was substantially damaged. The commercial-rated pilot and one passenger reported serious injuries. The flight had departed from the same airport, at 1000. The flight was landing on runway 18. According to the airport manager, the pilot was doing spot landings, and landed short of the runway. The airplane came to rest on runway 18. According to the pilot, he had stayed in the local traffic pattern, and was doing some landings, when he elected to depart the traffic pattern to do some local flying. Upon return to the airport he said, "...I made a normal approach and normal speed. About 25 to 50 feet [above the ground], the bottom dropped out coming down hard on [the] landing gear 6 feet short of [the] runway. Ground was soft, pitching the plane on its nose." According to the FAA inspector's statement the pilot "...did not report any mechanical problems."
the pilot misjudged the flare resulting in a hard landing short of the intended landing site, subsequently impacting the ground, and nosing over.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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