NTSB ERA21LA128 — 2021-02-08 · Orange, Virginia, United States

Current FAA registration · N841SP

Make / Model: CESSNA 172S
Year of manufacture: 2001 · 20 years old at event
Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER A&C (200 hp)
Seats / Engines: 4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date: 20010530
ADS-B equipped: Yes — Mode-S AB852E

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

N841SP Cessna 172 None

Probable cause & findings

The student pilot’s improper recovery from a bounced landing.

Factual narrative

The solo student pilot reported that during landing while on a cross country flight, the airplane was high and fast on final approach. The approach was continued and after the first touchdown the airplane “ballooned back up only to porpoise.” After the multiple touchdowns, the student pilot was able to stop the airplane near the midpoint of the runway, where the airplane was shut down and towed to the ramp. Examination of the airplane revealed that the bounced landing resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

— Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Student/instructed pilot
— Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Not attained/maintained

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2021_ERA21LA128.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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