Cessna 172 N4144L

Summary

On 14 May 2018 at about 22:55 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N4144L was involved in an accident near Nooksack, Washington, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

14 May 2018 at 22:55

Classification

Accident

Location

Nooksack, Washington, United States

Coordinates

48.8833, -122.2836

Aircraft

Cessna 172

Registration

N4144L

Category

Airplane

Year built

1966

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Burlington/Mount Vernon → Nooksack

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA18CA280

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot’s improper approach in tailwind conditions, which resulted in long landing and subsequent runway overrun.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, after three attempts to land the airplane at the one-way, private grass airstrip, the wind had become a tailwind. During the fourth approach, the wind was "apparently stabilized," but once he committed to land, the wind increased and became a hazard. He added that the airplane was then "too low to abort," and the airplane landed long. Subsequently, the airplane was unable to stop, overran the runway, and impacted a power pole. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, empennage, and both wings. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The automated weather observation system about 9 nautical miles away from the accident site reported that, about the time of the accident, the wind was from 220° at 5 knots. The pilot landed the airplane to the east.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.