Aircraft: Cessna 172. Injuries: None. Location: Grand Isle, Vt. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: Before departing for a private airport, the pilot called the owner of the destination airport to inquire about the condition of the turf runway. The area had been subject to rain and below freezing temperatures in the days prior to the accident. The […]
NTSB Accidents
Cessna stalls on approach
Aircraft: Cessna 340A. Injuries: 1 Fatal, 1 Serious. Location: Ocala, Fla. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: On the accident flight the 1,005-hour pilot was cleared to land and entered the left downwind leg of the traffic pattern to land to the north. A surface wind from the west prevailed with gusts to 15 knots. Radar data revealed […]
Sun blinds pilot on landing
Aircraft: Beech Baron. Injuries: None. Location: Walterboro, S.C. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The pilot was attempting to land in the late afternoon on a runway with a westerly heading. uring the landing roll, the afternoon sun “blinded” the pilot, limiting his vision. The airplane drifted off the right side of the runway, encountered soft ground, and […]
Poor flare for student pilot
Aircraft: Cessna 172. Injuries: None. Location: Richland, Wash. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The student pilot was practicing touch-and-goes. The first two were normal. On the third, the airplane touched down and began to porpoise and wheelbarrow on the nosewheel. The plane veered to the left and went off the runway, hit a snow berm, and nosed […]
Spatial disorientation leads to fatal accident
Aircraft: Cessna 150. Injuries: 1 Fatal. Location: Quincy, Fla. Aircraft damage: Destroyed. What reportedly happened: The 230-hour pilot, who did not have an instrument rating, landed after sunset, refueled the airplane, and took off again about 90 minutes later for an airport located to the east. According to a witness at the airport, fog was forming when the […]
Carburetor icing leads to off-airport landing
Aircraft: Cessna 172. Injuries: None. Location: Springfield, Tenn. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The pilot was on the second leg of a VFR cross-country flight. He was flying at an altitude of 3,500 feet in order to remain below an overcast ceiling. When he was 10 miles from the airport he began configuring the airplane for landing. […]
Distraction results in gear-up landing
Aircraft: Mooney M20K. Injuries: None. Location: Willmar, Minn. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The student pilot was practicing solo takeoffs and landings. On the third approach he extended his downwind leg to provide spacing for another airplane. He said that he forgot to lower the landing gear and inadvertently landed with the gear up. He reported that […]
Intoxicated pilot crashes
Aircraft: Cessna 150. Injuries: 1 Serious. Location: Denmark, Wis. Aircraft damage: Destroyed. What reportedly happened: During a flight before the accident flight, the cockpit lighting failed and the pilot made an unscheduled landing at an airport. Later, a witness saw the pilot walking back to the airport with a 12-pack of beer. The pilot explained that he was […]
Pilot takes off with malfunctioning engine
Aircraft: Bowers Fly Baby 1-A. Injuries: 1 Fatal. Location: Jefferson, Ga. Aircraft damage: Destroyed, What reportedly happened: A witness told investigators that the pilot was attempting to diagnose an engine problem prior to the accident flight. The witness said that the engine was running rough and backfiring during takeoff. When the airplane was about 200 feet AGL, it […]