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GAA16CA134

2016-02-17 · Newport News, Virginia, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport PHF

Current FAA registration · N35502

Make / Model
CESSNA 172S
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A3F9D3

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The student pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll, resulting in a runway excursion and impact with terrain.

Factual narrative

According to the student pilot, he was performing his third stop and go landing, during his first solo flight. He reported that during the landing flare he heard the stall warning horn, and he bounced the landing while traveling at a ground speed of approximately 45 knots. The student pilot remarked that he was not able to control the airplanes lateral direction during the landing roll and the airplane exited the right side of the runway subsequently impacting a drainage culvert. The airplane sustained substantial damage to right wing and the fire wall. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical failures or anomalies with the airplane prior to, or during the flight that would have prevented normal flight operation. According to the student pilot, he was performing his third stop and go landing, during his first solo flight. He reported that during the landing flare he heard the stall warning horn, and he bounced the landing while traveling at a ground speed of approximately 45 knots. The student pilot remarked that he was not able to control the airplanes lateral direction during the landing roll and the airplane exited the right side of the runway subsequently impacting a drainage culvert. The airplane sustained substantial damage to right wing and the fire wall. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical failures or anomalies with the airplane prior to, or during the flight that would have prevented normal flight operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
  • — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Pitch control-Not attained/maintained

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2016_GAA16CA134.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (stall, runway excursion). All research papers