Cessna R172K N5405V

Summary

On 16 December 2022 at about 20:15 local time, a Cessna R172K registered N5405V was involved in an accident near Brooksville, Florida, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

16 December 2022 at 20:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Brooksville, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Brooksville-Tampa Bay Rgnl (BKV)

Coordinates

28.4736, -82.4554

Aircraft

Cessna R172K

Registration

N5405V

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

Orlando → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA23LA091

1 person had minor injuries.

A hard landing that fractured the nose landing gear assembly, resulting in a loss of directional control and a nose-over.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he made a normal touchdown, but he was unable to maintain directional control of the airplane during the landing roll. He reported that the airplane did not respond to his control inputs, and it veered off the left side of the runway, struck a ditch, nosed over, and came to rest inverted. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the wings and fuselage. A tower controller initially reported to local law enforcement that the airplane bounced on landing, but he later recanted his statement. Examination of the wreckage revealed the nose wheel was separated and the nose gear fork assembly was fractured. A metallurgical examination of the fractured pieces of the nose gear revealed fracture surfaces with features consistent with overstress fracture. Flight control continuity was confirmed, and the remainder of the examination revealed no pre-impact mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Based on the physical evidence, the landing gear likely fractured during a hard landing, causing the loss of directional control.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.