MIA96LA034

Factual narrative

On December 4, 1995, about 1315 central standard time, a Cessna 172M, N12245, registered to a private owner, operating as a 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight, crashed during a go-around at Bruce Campbell Field, Madison, Mississippi. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The private pilot and three passengers reported no injuries. The flight originated from Atlanta, Georgia, about 3 hours before the accident. The pilot stated to the FAA that he was attempting to land on runway 17 with full flaps when the airplane started sinking. He added full power and raised the flaps. The airplane continued sinking until the left wing struck the runway. The airplane skidded to the left and came to rest in a small ditch. Examination of the airplane by the FAA revealed the flaps were found in the up position. The pilot stated in the NTSB Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report that the airplane started sinking on final approach, and he was unable to control the sink rate. He applied full power and the left wing, propeller, and right wing collided with the ground. He stated the cause of the accident was a change in wind direction or possible wind shear. Review of weather information obtained from Jackson, Mississippi, for the time period of the accident revealed no recorded record of turbulence, downdrafts, gusts, or windshear. The winds remained out of the east northeast at 3 to 4 knots. The Cessna Model 172 Owner's Manual, Section II Description And Operating Details, Balked Landing (Go-Around) states, in a balked landing (go-around) climb, reduce the wing flap setting to 20 degrees immediately after full power is applied. THE PILOT STATED THAT WHILE ON FINAL APPROACH WITH FULL FLAPS THE AIRPLANE STARTED SINKING. HE ADDED FULL POWER FOR A GO-AROUND AND RAISED THE FLAPS, BUT THE AIRPLANE CONTINUED SINKING UNTIL THE LEFT WING STRUCK THE RUNWAY. THE AIRPLANE SKIDDED TO THE LEFT AND CAME TO REST IN A SMALL DITCH. THE FLAPS WERE FOUND IN THE UP POSITION. THE OWNER'S MANUAL STATES TO REDUCE THE WING FLAP SETTING TO 20 DEGREES IMMEDIATELY AFTER FULL POWER IS APPLIED IN A BALKED LANDING (GO-AROUND) CLIMB. WEATHER INFORMATION FOR THE TIME PERIOD OF THE ACCIDENT REVEALED NO RECORD OF TURBULENCE, DOWNDRAFTS, GUSTS, OR WINDSHEAR. THE WINDS REMAINED OUT OF THE EAST NORTHEAST AT 3 TO 4 KNOTS. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12