Cessna 172N N738DS

Summary

On 18 February 2017 at about 18:15 local time, a Cessna 172N registered N738DS was involved in an accident near Statesville, North Carolina, 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

18 February 2017 at 18:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Statesville, North Carolina, United States

Nearest airport

Statesville Rgnl (SVH)

Coordinates

35.7650, -80.9539

Aircraft

Cessna 172N

Registration

N738DS

Category

Airplane

Year built

1977

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Statesville → Statesville

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA17CA114

Nobody was injured.

A loss of airplane control during takeoff for reasons that could not be determined based on the available information.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The student pilot was on the second leg of a solo cross-county training flight. During the landing flare at the destination airport, he landed the airplane "hard," and it bounced twice before he was able to regain control. He taxied back to the beginning of the runway and conducted a run-up. Noting no anomalies, he taxied onto the runway and started the takeoff roll. During the takeoff, he pulled back on the yoke "too far," and the airplane climbed between 30 and 40 ft before entering an aerodynamic stall and colliding with the ground. The nose landing gear collapsed, and the propeller struck the ground, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical anomalies with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. It could not be determined whether the airplane incurred damage during the hard landing that would have impacted the pilot's ability to maintain pitch control during the subsequent takeoff; therefore, the reason for the loss of control could not be determined.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.