No fatalities

4 Mar 2012: CESSNA 172S — Lafayette, TN

Lafayette, TN, United States

On 4 Mar 2012, a CESSNA 172S was involved in an aviation accident near Lafayette, TN. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot’s inadequate compensation for gusting crosswind conditions during landing, which resulted in a hard landing. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 1778583330Data APIEditorial standards

A pilot conducting touch-and-go landings experienced a hard landing when a gust lifted the airplane after touchdown, resulting in damage to the propeller and engine firewall.

Incident Overview

A pilot reported that while performing touch-and-go landing exercises, a wind gust caused the airplane to become airborne again after touchdown, leading to a hard impact with the runway. The incident occurred during an approach to runway 01.

Pilot Account

The pilot stated that he was conducting touch-and-go landings. The surface winds, reported from a location 31 miles from the accident site, were from 270 degrees at 9 knots, gusting to 20 knots. The pilot estimated the winds at 270 degrees, with a speed of 13 knots gusting to 25 knots. As the main landing gear contacted the runway, a gust of wind lifted the airplane back into the air to an altitude of about 8 feet above ground level. Before the pilot could add power, the airplane struck the runway hard on both the nose and main landing gear.

Post-Incident Actions

After the hard landing, the pilot returned to the departure airport without further incident. An examination of the airplane revealed damage to the propeller and the engine firewall. The pilot reported no pre-accident mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operations.

Aircraft Damage

The inspection confirmed that the propeller and engine firewall sustained damage. No other damage was reported in the source.

Contributing factors

PilotEffect on operationCrosswind correction — Not attained/maintained