Cessna 172 N1126U

Summary

On 16 February 2020 at about 16:30 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N1126U, operated by Schubert Brothers Aviation Inc, was involved in an accident near Rochester, New York, 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

16 February 2020 at 16:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Rochester, New York, United States

Nearest airport

Greater Rochester Intl (ROC)

Coordinates

43.1192, -77.6719

Aircraft

Cessna 172

Registration

N1126U

Category

Airplane

Year built

1976

Engines

1

Operator

Schubert Brothers Aviation Inc

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Rochester → Rochester

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA20CA102

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain airplane control during a go-around. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s decision to take off after perceiving a rudder issue during taxi operations.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, during his preflight inspection, he noted several anomalies. He added that the right rudder pedal was not functioning properly before the flight during taxi; however, he decided to go ahead with the flight. After takeoff, he reconsidered the flight and returned to the airport. While on approach to landing, the airplane was hard to control, so he chose to troubleshoot the control issue in the air and initiated a go-around. The airplane lifted off the runway and began to climb but then rapidly rolled right and then left and then impacted terrain. In addition, the pilot stated he lost directional control due to a rudder anomaly during a flight in the airplane several weeks earlier. A Federal Aviation Administration inspector who examined the airplane reported that the wings had sustained substantial damage. Postaccident examination of the rudder control system revealed no evidence of any preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.