Accident Details
On August 23, 2017, about 1630 central daylight time, a Cessna 172P, N97116, was substantially damaged during landing at Jack Edwards Airport (JKA) in Gulf Shores, Alabama. The commercial pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal flight conducted under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. No flight plan was filed for the flight, which departed Pensacola International Airport (PNS) in Pensacola, Florida, about 1600.
Pilot's Account
The pilot stated that before departing PNS, he noted the elevator trim was in the full nose-up position. He reset it to the "takeoff" position and completed the before-takeoff checklist and engine run-up procedures. During takeoff, he needed more back pressure on the control yoke than usual and trimmed the elevator trim tab up to reduce pressure. The flight to JKA was uneventful, and he made a normal approach to runway 17. When he reduced engine power to idle and began the landing flare, pulling back on the control yoke did not bring the nose up as expected. The airplane's attitude was described as "much more flat with only slight nose up." The airplane "fell through" the last few feet above the runway, landed hard, and bounced four or five times before stopping. He attempted to taxi off onto a taxiway but could not steer the airplane.
Postaccident Examination
A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) aviation maintenance inspector conducted a postaccident examination. The examination revealed a wrinkled firewall, a bent nose wheel, and both propeller blades damaged from ground contact. The control yoke had minimal movement because the upper yoke control tubes at the chain sprocket were binding against the aluminum channel brace due to the bent firewall. The elevator trim tab cable had slack and was not rigged correctly; when the trim tab wheel was moved, the cable's center travel block caught on the aft tail cone bulkhead. A second examination by an FAA airworthiness inspector determined that despite the elevator trim cable rigging, no evidence of a preaccident elevator control problem could be found.
Additional Observations
An FAA operations inspector spoke with the flight instructor of the pilot who flew the accident airplane prior to the accident flight. The student had not reported any issues with landing the airplane. About a month after the accident, the pilot flew with an FAA designated pilot examiner (DPE). According to the DPE, the pilot's landings were "very flat and never set up with a nose high attitude." On one landing, the airplane bounced and then ballooned, resulting in the DPE taking control. The DPE later spoke with the pilot's flight instructor, who said the pilot had a tendency to land flat, describing his landings as "on and off."
Pilot Background
The pilot held a commercial pilot certificate for rotorcraft with an instrument rating for rotorcraft-helicopter. He was enrolled in a Rotorcraft Transition Program to earn a private pilot certificate for airplane single-engine land, then a commercial pilot certificate for airplane multiengine land, and then attend a new-hire class for a commercial air carrier. His last FAA first class medical certificate was issued on June 30, 2017. He reported 29 hours of flight experience in single-engine airplanes.
Weather
Weather reported at JKA about the time of the accident included calm wind, visibility 10 miles, and clear skies.