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ERA12CA185

2012-02-13 · Eufaula, Alabama, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport EUF

Current FAA registration · N6194V

Make / Model
CESSNA 172S
Year of manufacture
2008 · 4 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING IO-360-L2A (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20080724
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A81325

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

An inadvertent collision with a deer during a night landing.

Factual narrative

According to the flight instructor, during a night landing at a non-tower-controlled airport, the student pilot flared the airplane. They both then felt and heard a loud jolt, and thought the student pilot had made a hard landing. The student pilot completed the landing roll, turned the airplane around, and began to back taxi. During the back taxi, both pilots saw remnants of a deer in the middle of the runway. The student pilot was then directed to taxi off the runway and shut down the engine. A postflight examination of the airplane revealed substantial damage to the main landing gear, engine compartment firewall, lower fuselage, nose cowling and propeller. No preexisting mechanical anomalies were noted with the airplane. According to the flight instructor, during a night landing at a non-tower-controlled airport, the student pilot flared the airplane. They both then felt and heard a loud jolt and thought the student pilot had made a hard landing. The student pilot completed the landing roll, turned the airplane around, and began to back taxi. During the back taxi, both pilots saw remnants of a deer in the middle of the runway. The student pilot was then directed to taxi off the runway and shut down the engine. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed substantial damage to the main landing gear, engine compartment firewall, lower fuselage, nose cowling and propeller. No preexisting mechanical anomalies were noted with the airplane. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Animal(s)/bird(s)-Contributed to outcome - C
  • — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Light condition-Dark-Awareness of condition

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2012_ERA12CA185.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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