What happened
On 17 March 2005, a Cessna 172H, registered ZS-EPY, was involved in a landing accident at New Tempe Aerodrome. The aircraft was being operated for training purposes with two occupants on board, including a student pilot and an instructor. During the approach to Runway 10, the flight crew was executing a glide approach using full flaps at an indicated airspeed of 60 mph. During the final stages of the landing, the student pilot initiated the flare too early, leading to a hard landing on the runway.
While the impact caused significant damage to the aircraft's fuselage and under-surface, there were no injuries reported for either occupant, and both individuals were able to exit the aircraft safely.
The investigation
The investigation reviewed the flight parameters and the maintenance status of the aircraft. Records indicated that the aircraft's last Maintenance Program Inspection (MPI) had been completed on 22 February 2005, with 77 flight hours accumulated since that certification. The training organization involved held a valid accreditation and approval certificate at the time of the occurrence. Meteorological conditions at the time of the accident were reported as fine.