CESSNA 182T near Jackson, MI — 2017-07-05

Final reportCEN17LA257

Date: 2017-07-05
Location: Jackson, MI, USA
Airport: JXN
Aircraft: CESSNA 182T
Registration: CGBFY
Category: Airplane
Highest injury: None
Fatalities: 0
Phase of flight: Takeoff roll

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to maintain pitch control during the takeoff roll during an attempted takeoff. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's selection of takeoff flaps after he began the takeoff roll.

Contributing factors

Contributing to the accident was the pilot's selection of takeoff flaps after he began the takeoff roll.

NTSB narrative

The private pilot was conducting a cross-country flight and was performing a stop-and-go landing at an interim airport. After landing, he fully retracted the flaps. During the subsequent takeoff roll, the pilot had the pilot-rated passenger extend the flaps to 10°, and the airplane began to porpoise and then impacted terrain. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of any preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. During the examination, the nose pitch trim was found in the full nose-down position. Full nose-down pitch trim would have increased the pitch control forces needed to counteract the nose-down pitching tendencies of the airplane when the flaps were initially extended. (Initial flap deflections of up to 15° while moving can cause the airplane to balloon and create nose-down pitching tendencies.) Thus, the combination of the full nose-down pitch trim and the extension of the flaps during the takeoff roll would have required increased pitch control inputs to maintain airplane control. It is likely the pilot did not make such inputs and that this resulted in his loss of pitch control during the attempted takeoff.