Cessna 172P N97306

Summary

On 1 September 2006 at about 02:11 local time, a Cessna 172P registered N97306 was involved in an accident near Spanish Springs, Nevada, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

1 September 2006 at 02:11

Classification

Accident

Location

Spanish Springs, Nevada, United States

Nearest airport

Spanish Springs (N86)

Coordinates

39.6772, -119.8272

Aircraft

Cessna 172P

Registration

N97306

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Santa Monica → Spanish Springs

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

LAX06CA281

Nobody was injured.

the pilot's failure to initiate a timely go-around and to attain an adequate climb rate. Factors in the accident were the high density altitude and the likely quartering tail wind that may have affected the aircraft's climb gradient.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane collided with a house during a go-around. The pilot was unfamiliar with the airport. Upon arrival, he flew around the airport at 5,600 feet mean sea level (msl); the airport elevation was 4,600 feet. UNICOM informed him that runway 16 was the preferred runway. He noted that the airport had a hill, which had silos on it, on the approach end of the runway. He maintained what he felt was a safe vertical separation from the silos, and came in a bit high as he set up for the landing. During his flare, he became aware that the runway sloped uphill. He was below the crest, and could not see how long the runway continued past it. He decided to go around, rather than rolling to the top and finding that the runway ended. Because of the runway slope, he felt that he could not level off and pickup speed. He pulled the nose up, and upon climbing above the crest, noticed houses at the end of the runway. He applied full power, and leaned the mixture for pattern altitude. The airplane started to climb, and he retracted the flaps up 1/2 notch; however, the airplane seemed to lose some lift. The terrain ahead sloped downhill to his left, so he banked slightly to the left. He maintained 60 knots, and noted that the stall warning horn did not sound. The airplane did not gain enough airspeed or altitude, and collided with the house. The Pilot Information Manual for the Model 172P states that during a go-around the flaps should be retracted to 20 degrees and the climb conducted at a speed of 55 knots. The density altitude was calculated to be 6,700 feet. The Airport/Facility Directory, Southwest U. S., indicated that that there was no line of sight between the ends of the runway. It stated that runway 16 had a 2.5 percent up gradient in the first 500 feet. The closest aviation weather reporting facility 14 nautical miles away was reporting winds from 060 degrees at 5 knots.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.