On 14 Jul 2019, a Cessna 172 S operated by Christiansen Aviation Inc was involved in an aviation accident near Elkton, FL. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot under instruction's failure to follow the flight instructor’s directions and the flight instructor's delayed remedial action and subsequent exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 15 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.
During a training flight, a simulated engine failure led to a stall and nose-over after the pilot-under-instruction failed to execute a recovery command. The aircraft sustained substantial damage to both wings and engine mounts.
Sequence of Events
According to the flight instructor, he first showed the pilot-under-instruction (PUI) how to handle a simulated engine failure and recovery while at altitude. Afterward, the instructor requested that the PUI carry out the same maneuver. The training occurred over an open field. The instructor permitted the PUI to descend. At around 200 feet above ground level (AGL), the instructor gave a verbal command to "Recover" and to abandon the landing. The PUI did not comply. The instructor then took control of the aircraft when airspeed was approximately 50 knots and altitude was about 100 feet AGL. The airplane entered a stall, hit the ground, and then turned over onto its nose.
Damage and Mechanical Condition
Both wings and the engine mounts sustained substantial damage. The instructor stated that the airplane experienced no mechanical failures or malfunctions before the accident that would have prevented normal operation.
Contributing factors
Student/instructed pilotInstructor/check pilotAngle of attack — Not attained/maintained