Pilot Debrief

LIBERTY AEROSPACE INCORPORATED LIBERTY XL-2 near Burlington, NC — 2011-02-26

Final reportERA11CA169
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Date
2011-02-26
Location
Burlington, NC, USA
Airport
BUY
Aircraft
LIBERTY AEROSPACE INCORPORATED LIBERTY XL-2
Registration
N646XL
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0

Probable cause

The student pilot's improper recovery from a bounced landing.

NTSB narrative

According to the student pilot, he was attempting a second touch-and-go landing and takeoff. As he turned the airplane on to final approach, another airplane was crossing the runway threshold for a full stop landing. The pilot continued the approach, but slowed the airplane due to excess airspeed during the first landing, and to give the other airplane time to clear the runway. After crossing the runway threshold, he reduced the power to idle and began to flare. The main landing gear touched down harder than he anticipated, and the pilot said the airplane must have bounced. When the nose landing gear touched down, it broke away from the airplane and the propeller struck the runway. According to a Federal Aviation Administration inspector, the airplane incurred substantial damage to the engine firewall. The pilot did not report any preexisting mechanical anomalies with the airplane.

NTSB coding

View NTSB final report

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