Cessna 172SP N462ER

Summary

On 5 May 2007 at about 01:31 local time, a Cessna 172SP registered N462ER, operated by Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, was involved in an accident near Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. One person was 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

5 May 2007 at 01:31

Classification

Accident

Location

Daytona Beach, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Daytona Beach International (KDAB)

Coordinates

29.1797, -81.0578

Aircraft

Cessna 172SP

Registration

N462ER

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Embry Riddle Aeronautical University

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Daytona Beach → Daytona Beach

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Bright

NTSB number

NYC07CA112

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's improper flare at night, which resulted in a hard landing. A factor in the accident was the pilot's lack of recent night experience.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the private pilot, as she approached to land on the runway at the large, well lit, international airport, the Cessna 172SP was "a little high, a little fast, and I flared higher than usual." The airplane landed hard, bounced, and collapsed the nose landing gear, which resulted in substantial damage. According to the pilot, it was her first night solo flight at this airport, and the purpose of the flight was preparation for an additional rating. A review of her logbook revealed that she had accumulated 160 total hours of flight experience, of which 22 hours were at night. She had performed only one night landing with an instructor 2 nights before the accident flight, and the most recent night landing before the instructional flight was 64 days prior.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.