Event FTW02LA254

Factual narrative

On September 5, 2002, at 1915 central daylight time, a Cessna 152 single-engine airplane, N94112, sustained substantial damage during a hard landing at the Richard Lloyd Jones Jr. Airport, Tulsa, Oklahoma. The student pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, was not injured. The airplane was operated by the Spartan School of Aeronautics, Tulsa, and registered to Spartan Aviation Industries Inc., also of Tulsa. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a flight plan was not filed for the 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instructional flight. The local flight originated at 1910. On the Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1/2), and in a telephone interview with the NTSB investigator-in-charge, the flight instructor reported that this was the first supervised solo flight for the 34-hour student pilot. The instructor stated that earlier in the day she had flown with the student who had successfully completed seven full stop landings. The instructor reported that on the student's supervised solo flight, the student failed to reduce power and "looked a little high and a little fast as he approached runway 19L." The instructor also stated that as the airplane came down and the wheels touched the ground, the airplane bounced off the runway and its nose wheel touched the ground. The instructor reported this happened three times, and the third time "it seemed as if the airplane's nose wheel folded underneath as the airplane skidded off the right side of the runway." The airplane came to rest in an upright position approximately 1,500 feet from the approach end of the runway. An FAA inspector, who responded to the accident site, reported structural damage to the firewall. The left wing tip, propeller, and front of the engine cowling were also damaged. At 1853, the airport's Automated Surface Observing System (AWOS) reported the wind light and variable at 4 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, sky clear, temperature 34 degrees C, dew point 19 degrees C, and an altimeter of 30.00 inches of Mercury. The flight instructor reported that this was the first supervised solo flight for the 34-hour student pilot. The instructor stated that earlier in the day she had flown with the student, who had successfully completed seven full stop landings. The instructor reported that on the student's supervised solo flight, the student failed to reduce power and "looked a little high and a little fast as he approached runway 19L." The instructor also stated that as the airplane came down and the wheels touched the ground, the airplane bounced off the runway and its nose wheel touched the ground. The instructor reported this happened three times, and the third time "it seemed as if the airplane's nose wheel folded undernearth as the airplane skidded off the right side of the runway." The airplane came to rest in an upright position approximately 1,500 feet from the approach end of the runway. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12