NTSB CAROL · Event
Event GAA18CA340
Registry · N363CK
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
CESSNA 172S
Year of manufacture
2004 · 14 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING IO-360-L2A (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20040422
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A417AD
Registrant of record
AVIATOR AIR OPERATIONS LLC
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot’s improper landing flare, which resulted in a bounced landing and subsequent porpoise.
Factual narrative
The pilot reported that, during a touch and go, he came in too fast and the airplane landed hard and bounced. He added that, he should have gone around but chose to "ride it out". Subsequently, the airplane porpoised, the nose wheel collapsed, and the airplane came to rest nose down on the runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The automated weather observation system at the accident airport reported that, about 5 minutes before the accident, the wind was from 180° at 8 knots, and that about 15 minutes after the accident, the wind was 170° at 8 knots, gusting to 15 knots. The pilot landed on runway 16. The pilot reported that, during a touch-and-go, he came in too fast, and the airplane landed hard and bounced. He added that he should have gone around but chose to "ride it out." Subsequently, the airplane porpoised, the nosewheel collapsed, and the airplane came to rest nose down on the runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The automated weather observation system at the accident airport reported that, about 5 minutes before the accident, the wind was from 180° at 8 knots and that, about 15 minutes after the accident, the wind was 170° at 8 knots, gusting to 15 knots. The pilot landed on runway 16. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12
NTSB Findings
Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).
- C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
- C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Not attained/maintained - C
- — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Gusts-Effect on operation
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2018_GAA18CA340.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type. Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Conference Paper
Crash Testing and Simulation of a Cessna 172 Aircraft: Pitch Down Impact Onto Soft Soil
During the summer of 2015, NASA Langley Research Center conducted three full-scale crash tests of Cessna 172 (C-172) aircraft at the NASA Langley Landing and Impact Research (LandIR) Facility.
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Technical Memorandum (TM)
Simulating the Impact Response of Three Full-Scale Crash Tests of Cessna 172 Aircraft
During the summer of 2015, a series of three full-scale crash tests were performed at the Landing and Impact Research Facility located at NASA Langley Research Center of Cessna 172 aircraft.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2023 · Conference paper
Validation of Training Satisfaction Survey
The Training Satisfaction Survey (TSS) was developed as part of a larger project to examine the features of Virtual Reality software and supporting devices as a training program on visual illusions an…
- Semantic Scholar 2021 · Article (Data in Brief)
Cockpit voice recorder transcript data: Capturing safety voice and safety listening during historic aviation accidents
Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) transcripts capture audio data within cockpit environments. This aids the investigation of causal factors contributing to aviation accidents by revealing communication and…
- Semantic Scholar 2021 · Article (Safety Science)
Safety voice and safety listening during aviation accidents: Cockpit voice recordings reveal that speaking-up to power is not enough
Abstract Safety voice is theorised as an important factor for mitigating accidents, but behavioural research during actual hazards has been scant.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2021 · Journal article (JAAER)
Can Backward-Chained, Ab-Initio Pilot Training Decrease Time to First Solo?
Flight simulation has made progressively significant inroads into pilot training at all levels of a pilot’s career – typically starting with training for the Instrument rating in light aircraft and co…
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