NTSB CAROL · Event
Event MIA04CA077
Registry · N5280D
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
CESSNA 172S
Year of manufacture
2002 · 2 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING IO-360-L2A (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20021106
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A6A902
Registrant of record
HDW FLORIDA HELICOPTERS INC
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot's failure to maintain directional control while landing in gusty wind conditions which resulted in the airplane departing the runway and impacting a sign, incurring damage.
Factual narrative
On April 17, 2004, about 1230 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172S, N5280D, registered to I72 Inc., and operated by a private individual as a Title 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight, veered during landing in Key West, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The private-rated pilot and 4 passengers were not injured, and the airplane incurred substantial damage. The flight originated in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the same day, about 1125. The pilot stated that during the final approach to land he did not experience any turbulence, but he noticed that the indicated airspeed was fluctuating between 75 and 80 knots. Once over the touchdown area, he said that he experienced strong gusts which caused a hard landing, and as the right main landing gear touched the runway during the hard landing the airplane bounced back in the air a few feet. He said the nose of the airplane was still over the centerline of the runway, so he reduced power and allowed the airplane to glide to a touchdown, but as the airplane touched the runway, it immediately skidded to the left, and the right main landing gear impacted one of the fixed distance signs. Prior to the accident the pilot stated there were mechanical failures or malfunction to the airplane or any of its systems. The pilot stated that during the final approach the indicated airspeed was fluctuating between 75 and 80 knots. Once over the touchdown area, he said that he experienced strong gusts which caused a hard landing. He said the airplane bounced back in the air, but the nose of the airplane was still over the runway centerline, so he reduced power and allowed the airplane to glide to a touchdown. As the airplane touched the runway, the pilot said that it veered to the left, and the right main landing gear impacted one of the fixed distance signs. Prior to the accident the pilot stated there were mechanical failures or malfunction to the airplane or any of its systems. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2004_MIA04CA077.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 or causal vocabulary (turbulence). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- arXiv 2026 · arXiv preprint
Direct Numerical Simulations of Ice-Ocean Boundary Turbulence
Turbulent heat and freshwater transport at ice-ocean interfaces controls glacier and iceberg melt rates, yet the underlying physics remains poorly constrained.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2025 · Journal article (JAAER)
Political Turbulence and Aviation Safety: A Cross-National Analysis of Political Stability's Effects on Aviation Accidents
To what extent does political stability affect aviation safety? This research aims to link domestic political conditions and public safety through the consideration of aviation accident frequency.
- arXiv 2025 · arXiv preprint
Explainable LiDAR 3D Point Cloud Segmentation and Clustering for Detecting Airplane-Generated Wind Turbulence
Wake vortices - strong, coherent air turbulences created by aircraft - pose a significant risk to aviation safety and therefore require accurate and reliable detection methods.
- arXiv 2024 · arXiv preprint
Does small-scale turbulence matter for ice growth in mixed-phase clouds?
Representing the glaciation of mixed-phase clouds in terms of the Wegener-Bergeron-Findeisen process is a challenge for many weather and climate models, which tend to overestimate this process because…
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint
Effects of electrostatic interaction on clustering and collision of bidispersed inertial particles in homogeneous and isotropic turbulence
In sandstorms and thunderclouds, turbulence-induced collisions between solid particles and ice crystals lead to inevitable triboelectrification.
- SKYbrary (Eurocontrol) 2023 · SKYbrary article
Wake Vortex Turbulence — SKYbrary Knowledge Base
SKYbrary wake vortex turbulence comprehensive article — generation mechanics, dissipation factors, separation standards (ICAO LIGHT/MEDIUM/HEAVY/SUPER + recategorisation RECAT-EU).
Browse the full corpus — academia portal ↗