NTSB CAROL · Event
Event SEA95LA047
Registry · N77480
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
CESSNA 120
Year of manufacture
1946 · 49 years old at event
Engine
CONT MOTOR C85 SERIES (85 hp)
Seats / Engines
2 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19560711
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S AA7B6C
Registrant of record
WHITE JOHN D
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
THE PILOT'S IMPROPER RECOVERY FROM A BOUNCED LANDING AND INADVERTENT USE OF THE BRAKES.
Factual narrative
On February 9, 1995, at 1830 Pacific standard time, N77480, a Cessna 120, operated by the owner/pilot, nosed over during landing in Scappoose, Oregon, and was substantially damaged. The private pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and a flight plan was not filed. The personal flight departed from Hillsboro, Oregon, and was conducted under 14 CFR 91. In a written statement, the pilot reported that the airplane bounced on touch down. The pilot stated that he did not realize that his feet moved up on the rudder pedals when he applied pressure to recover from the bounce. Instead, the brakes were applied and the airplane nosed over on the runway. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane at the time of the accident. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT THE AIRPLANE BOUNCED ON TOUCH DOWN AND THAT HE DIDN'T REALIZE THAT HIS FEET MOVED UP ON THE RUDDER PEDALS WHEN HE APPLIED PRESSURE TO RECOVER FROM THE BOUNCE. THE BRAKES WERE INADVERTENTLY APPLIED AND THE AIRPLANE NOSED OVER ON THE RUNWAY. THERE WERE NO REPORTED MECHANICAL FAILURES OR MALFUNCTIONS. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1995_SEA95LA047.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.
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