Accident Overview
On October 31, 2009, at approximately 1845 mountain standard time, a Cessna T182T, registration N652CP, operated by the Civil Air Patrol (CAP), was substantially damaged when it struck a snow berm during landing at Fort Collins-Loveland Municipal Airport (FNL), Loveland, Colorado. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The instructional flight was conducted under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 without a flight plan. The pilot and flight instructor on board were not injured. The local flight originated at FNL approximately 1705.
Flight Sequence
The pilot reported that after completing the CAP check flight, they returned to the airport for pattern work. The flight instructor requested a demonstration of a "power-off 180-degree accuracy approach and landing to the 1000-foot mark" on runway 15. The first attempt resulted in a go-around. On the second attempt, the pilot noted the airplane was "a little low but [we] were carrying 75 KIAS (best glide speed) with no flaps." As the airplane crossed the runway threshold, they felt an impact and landed hard. The emergency locator transmitter (ELT) activated, but the airbags did not deploy. The aircraft taxied to the ramp via taxiway A4.
Damage and Runway Condition
Post-flight inspection revealed a bent right main landing gear, wrinkled right fairing, torn skin on the right horizontal stabilizer and displaced elevator, and buckling of the fuselage skin aft of the left main landing gear. Examination of the runway showed that the blast pad chevrons were clear of snow, but a 2-foot high snowbank was present between the runway threshold lights.
Instructor Observations
The instructor stated that the upslope runway, inability to brighten the airspeed readout on the G1000 avionics system, and dusk light conditions were factors in the accident.