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MIA99LA161

1999-06-04 · LA FAYETTE, Georgia, United States · Minor · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport 9A5

N3773V has since been reassigned. It is now registered to a different aircraft (INFINITY 2004 CLASSIC, built 2004), which was not involved in this event.

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The improper flare by the student pilot and the inadequate supervision by the pilot in command.

Factual narrative

On June 4, 1999, about 1045 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 150M, N3773V, registered to a private individual, was landed hard at Barwick La Fayette Airport, La Fayette, Georgia. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR part 91 instructional flight. The airplane was substantially damaged and the private-rated pilot and student pilot sustained minor injuries. The flight originated about 1 hour earlier from Barwick La Fayette Airport, La Fayette, Georgia. The private-rated pilot-in-command (PIC) stated that the purpose of the flight was for the airplane owner (student pilot) to follow him through on the flight controls. The flight departed, performed two landings, then flew to a nearby city, and returned to the departure airport for another landing. While on final approach with the flaps fully extended; the PIC was manipulating the throttle control and the student was manipulating the flight controls. The PIC stated that the student flared too high and advised the student of this. The student then reportedly pushed forward on the control column but before the PIC could react, the airplane then landed hard in a nose-low attitude. The PIC further stated that there was no preimpact failure or malfunction of the flight controls or of the engine. The student stated that he does not recall pushing forward on the control column but did state that he did not hear the stall warning horn. According to the airplane owner, the stall warning system operationally checked satisfactory after the accident. The pilot in command (PIC) stated that the purpose of the flight was for the aircraft owner, a student pilot, to follow him through on the flight controls. The flight departed, and the PIC performed 2 landings, flew to a nearby city, then returned to the departure airport and entered the traffic pattern. While on final approach with the flaps fully extended, the PIC was manipulating the throttle control and the student was manipulating the flight controls. The student reportedly flared too high and the PIC advised the student of this who then pushed forward on the control column. The airplane then impacted the runway in a nose low attitude. The PIC further stated that there was no preimpact failure or malfunction of the flight controls or the engine. The student stated that he does not recall pushing forward on the control column but did state that he did not hear the stall warning horn. According to the airplane owner, postaccident investigation revealed that the stall warning horn operated satisfactory. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1999_MIA99LA161.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). All research papers