Cessna 172S N219ME

Summary

On 21 March 2003 at about 15:50 local time, a Cessna 172S registered N219ME, operated by Elite Flight Center, was involved in an accident near Monroe, Georgia, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

21 March 2003 at 15:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Monroe, Georgia, United States

Coordinates

33.8667, -83.7306

Aircraft

Cessna 172S

Registration

N219ME

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Elite Flight Center

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Atlanta → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ATL03FA064

2 people died.

The pilot’s exceedence of the design limits of the airplane, which resulted in the overload failure of the horizontal stabilizers, followed by the overload separation of the right wing and subsequent loss of control.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

A witness stated she observed the airplane in straight and level flight at 1,500 feet. The airplane appeared to be traveling very fast. The nose of the airplane was observed to descend down to a 45-degree attitude and the airspeed increased. The airplane was observed to start a spin to the right and turned 180-degrees when a wing separated from the airplane. Another witness stated she observed the airplane in a 45-degree nose down attitude. The airplane was making a loud noise similar to an increase in airspeed. The nose of the airplane pitched down 90-degrees and she thought the pilot was performing a stunt maneuver. She then observed parts separate from the airplane and paper falling to the ground. Review of radar data showed the airplane's climb from the departure airport to a cruise altitude of 5, 700 feet. The radar data did not capture the breakup event. Review of failed components submitted to the NTSB Materials Laboratory revealed all failure fractures were consistent with overstress fracture, and there was no evidence of significant wear or corrosion.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.