On May 3, 2011, a CESSNA 172P operated by ARI BEN AVIATOR INC was involved in an aviation accident near Stuart, FL. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The student pilot did not flare the airplane properly, which resulted in a hard landing. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 17 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.
A student pilot's failure to flare properly caused a hard landing, nose gear collision, and subsequent discovery of a bent propeller blade tip and buckled engine firewall.
Incident Overview
A student pilot reported that he did not flare the airplane correctly during landing, resulting in a hard impact. The nose landing gear struck the runway. After the hard touchdown, the pilot executed a go-around and subsequently landed without further incident.
Post-Flight Findings
Another pilot later flew the same airplane but returned it early after noticing a "different sound in engine noise." Upon inspection, that pilot observed that one propeller blade tip was bent. Company maintenance personnel conducted a further examination and discovered that the engine firewall was buckled.
Probable cause
The student pilot did not flare the airplane properly, which resulted in a hard landing.
Contributing factors
Student pilotIncorrect use/operation
Related events
Same aircraft family
24 Aug 2026 — CESSNA 172M
21 Aug 2026 — CESSNA 172P (Vascular Wings LLC)
18 Aug 2026 — CESSNA 172L (Ocala Aviation Services INC)
16 Aug 2026 — CESSNA 172L (Foothill Aircraft Sales and Service Inc.)
9 Aug 2026 — CESSNA 172N (Kimber 123 Holdings LLC)
5 Aug 2026 — CESSNA 172P (Aire Services LLC)
4 Aug 2026 — CESSNA 172L
2 Aug 2026 — CESSNA 172 (Idaho Skyriders Flying Club)
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