Pilot Debrief

CESSNA 208B near Raeford, NC — 2012-08-18

Final reportERA12CA519
Sign in to save
Date
2012-08-18
Location
Raeford, NC, USA
Airport
5W4
Aircraft
CESSNA 208B
Registration
N80GE
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0

Probable cause

The pilot's decision to land in a grassy area next to a paved runway, which resulted in impact with a ditch and subsequent nose landing gear collapse.

NTSB narrative

According to the pilot, during the landing on a grassy area that was parallel to the paved runway, the airplane touched down and impacted a ditch near an intersecting taxiway. The airplane became airborne, touched down on the other side of the intersecting taxiway, bounced again, and then landed hard on the nose gear, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage and subsequent collapse of the nose landing gear. In a telephone interview, the pilot stated that the ditch was about 200 feet from his initial touchdown point and that he regularly lands on the grass, in the opposite direction, in order to minimize the wear on the main landing gear tires. No preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures were noted with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • Photos
  • 5 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents5

Related mishaps