What happened
The pilot was attempting to land at his intended destination when he entered the traffic pattern. During the final approach, the pilot applied full flaps and noted that the approach appeared stable. However, as the Cessna 172 crossed the runway threshold, the pilot perceived the airspeed as being too high and decided to execute a go-around.
Upon applying full throttle and retracting the flaps by one notch, the pilot experienced a malfunction where the control stick felt jammed. He was unable to move the stick forward sufficiently to lower the nose and accelerate. The aircraft maintained a nose-high climb attitude, causing the airspeed to decay until a pre-stall buffet was felt. To avoid an impact with a nearby highway, the pilot directed the aircraft toward trees. The aircraft struck trees and terrain, resulting in substantial damage to the airplane. The pilot and passenger sustained minor injuries.
The investigation
A post-accident inspection of the flight control system revealed no mechanical anomalies or failures within the system itself. However, investigators discovered that the forward travel of the rear seat control stick was restricted when it made contact with an object located in the seat back pocket. The pilot had placed a digital camera in that pocket prior to the flight.