Aviation Accident Summaries

Aviation Accident Summary NYC06CA109

Shamokin, PA, USA

Aircraft #1

N4732Q

Cessna 152

Analysis

The pilot of the Cessna 152 was landing on a 3,297-foot-long runway. She reported that when the airplane touched down, it began to porpoise. She was not able to correct the bouncing, and elected to abort the landing. The pilot stated she "panicked" when she observed trees located off the end of the runway, and mistakenly retracted the flaps completely. The airplane climbed slowly, and impacted trees off the left side of the runway. It then nosed over, and impacted the ground. Examination of the airplane did not reveal any mechanical malfunctions, nor did the pilot report any. The pilot reported 140 hours of total flight experience, which included about 120 hours in the same make and model.

Factual Information

The pilot of the Cessna 152 was landing on a 3,297-foot-long runway. She reported that when the airplane touched down, it began to porpoise. She was not able to correct the bouncing, and elected to abort the landing. The pilot stated she "panicked" when she observed trees located off the end of the runway, and mistakenly retracted the flaps completely. The airplane climbed slowly, and impacted trees off the left side of the runway. It then nosed over, and impacted the ground. Examination of the airplane did not reveal any mechanical malfunctions, nor did the pilot report any. The pilot reported 140 hours of total flight experience, which included about 120 hours in the same make and model as the accident airplane.

Probable Cause and Findings

The pilot's failure to recover from a bounced landing, and her improper use of flaps during an aborted landing, which resulted in an in-flight collision with trees.

 

Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database

Get all the details on your iPhone or iPad with:

Aviation Accidents App

In-Depth Access to Aviation Accident Reports