Aviation Accident Summaries

Aviation Accident Summary LAX01LA167

Hayward, CA, USA

Aircraft #1

N757XS

Cessna 152

Analysis

An FAA Inspector interviewed the pilot and examined the airplane. The pilot stated he had flown two landing patterns with a certified flight instructor in preparation for his second solo flight. The instructor deplaned and the student made two successful touch-and-go landings prior to the accident. On the third landing the airplane landed hard, bounced, and landed on the nose wheel. The student said that the bounce "was very high and I [tried] to pitch down and let it glide, but the nose wheel touch[ed] down first." The nose wheel was folded back along the underside of the fuselage and the left wingtip struck the runway bending the wing spar.

Factual Information

On May 7, 2001, at 1140 hours Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 152, N757XS, sustained substantial damage during a hard landing at the Hayward, California, airport. The airplane was operated by Flying Viking, Inc., under the provisions of CFR Part 91, and rented by a student pilot who was not injured. Visual metrological conditions prevailed and no flight plan had been filed for the local instructional flight, which departed about 1115. A Federal Aviation Administration Inspector interviewed the pilot and examined the airplane. The pilot stated he had flown two landing patterns with a certified flight instructor in preparation for his second solo flight. The instructor deplaned and the student made two successful touch-and-go landings prior to the accident. On the third landing the airplane landed hard, bounced, and landed on the nose wheel. The student said that the bounce "was very high and I [tried] to pitch down and let it glide, but the nose wheel touch[ed] down first." The nose wheel was folded back along the underside of the fuselage and the left wingtip struck the runway bending the wing spar.

Probable Cause and Findings

the student pilot's misjudged landing flare and improper use of the elevator control.

 

Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database

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