Cessna 172 N5064H

Summary

On 16 June 2022 at about 21:45 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N5064H, operated by Franklin Air Services LLC, was involved in an accident near Brevard, North Carolina, United States. 3 people were on board and 3 were seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

16 June 2022 at 21:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Brevard, North Carolina, United States

Coordinates

35.1777, -82.8264

Aircraft

Cessna 172

Registration

N5064H

Category

Airplane

Year built

1975

Engines

1

Operator

Franklin Air Services LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Ashville → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA22LA274

3 people were seriously injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain altitude while maneuvering the airplane at a low altitude, which resulted in impact with trees and terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot and two passengers were flying at low altitudes over a camp and dropping candy from the airplane. The pilot recalled that the airplane was “a couple hundred feet” above the trees in slow flight; the next thing that the pilot remembered was waking up in a hospital. During the flight, one of the passengers commented to the pilot that the airplane was getting close to the treetops and that he needed to apply power and pull up. The pilot stated something similar to, “I’m working on it.” The passenger recalled that the airplane hit trees and that he woke up next to the airplane. He also stated that the engine was operating normally. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. An onboard image recording from a camera found at the accident site revealed that the airplane was maneuvering at a low altitude and high bank angles until the airplane impacted terrain. Given the passenger’s recollections and the onboard image recording evidence, the pilot allowed the airplane to sink below the level of the treetops while conducting high bank angles at a low altitude.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.