Cessna 172 N118ET

Summary

On 20 March 2016 at about 19:00 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N118ET was involved in an accident near Nashville, Tennessee, United States. 4 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

20 March 2016 at 19:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Nashville, Tennessee, United States

Nearest airport

John C Tune (JWN)

Coordinates

36.1833, -86.8867

Aircraft

Cessna 172

Registration

N118ET

Category

Airplane

Year built

1997

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Nashville → Nashville

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA16CA157

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's excessive pitch up and incorrect action of selecting flaps to zero degrees, which resulted in a tail strike during a go-around in crosswind conditions.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that during landing in crosswind conditions, the airplane began to drift to the right over the runway lights in the landing flare. The pilot further reported that he determined "it was not safe to land" and applied full power to go-around and subsequently retracted the flaps from 30 degrees to zero degrees. During the go-around, he reported that the airplane was unable to gain airspeed or altitude and touched down in the grass next to the runway and aborted the go-around. Subsequently, the pilot taxied back onto the runway and proceeded to the ramp. A postaccident examination revealed substantial damage to elevator and rudder. The pilot reported that "he did not realize the angle of attack was severe enough" to cause a tail strike during the go-around. The Cessna 172R (180 HP) Pilot's Operating Handbook in part states: "In a balked landing (go-around) climb, reduce the flap setting to 20 degrees immediately after full power is applied. If obstacles must be cleared during the go-around climb, reduce the wing flap setting to 10 degrees and maintain a safe airspeed until the obstacles are cleared." The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.