What happened
On May 20, 2008, a Cessna 172N, registration N6521J, was involved in an accident during the landing phase in Palo Alto, California. The pilot reported that the approach to landing was unstable. During short final, the pilot applied additional power because the aircraft was flying too low and too slow.
Upon touchdown, the aircraft began porpoising, characterized by several hard bounces along the runway. The sequence of bounces resulted in damage to the propeller, firewall, engine mount, and nose wheel. There were no injuries resulting from the event.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the sequence of the landing and the resulting mechanical damage. The aircraft sustained a propeller strike, as well as damage to the engine mount, firewall, and nose gear.