No fatalities

Porpoise Landing Leads to Runway Overrun and Substantial Damage

Newburyport, MA, United States

On April 30, 2015, a CESSNA 182T T operated by KEP2 AVIATION LLC was involved in an aviation accident near Newburyport, MA. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot's failure to recover from a bounced landing, which resulted in substantial damage to the airplane during the runway overrun. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 2026-08-03Data APIEditorial standards

After two go-arounds, the pilot touched down too fast on the third attempt, porpoising three times. On the third bounce, the go-around was aborted due to insufficient runway, leading to an overrun into soft mud, causing substantial wing and fuselage damage.

Incident Overview

The pilot executed two approaches that resulted in go-arounds before attempting a third landing. During the third landing attempt, the pilot touched down too fast, causing the airplane to bounce three times in a "classic porpoise" motion. On the third bounce, the pilot attempted to go around but had insufficient runway remaining. Subsequently, the airplane overran the runway, and the main landing gear and nose wheel dug into soft mud.

Damage Assessment

The accident resulted in substantial damage to both wings and the fuselage of the airplane.

Pilot Report

The pilot reported no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Contributing factors

Causes

PilotDescent/approach/glide path — Not attained/maintained

Other contributing factors

Landing distance — Not attained/maintained