Pilot Debrief

CESSNA 182 near Richmond, VA — 2023-07-07

Final reportERA23LA299
Sign in to save
Date
2023-07-07
Location
Richmond, VA, USA
Airport
FCI
Aircraft
CESSNA 182
Registration
N759HD
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0
Phase of flight
Approach

Probable cause

The pilot’s delay in performing a go-around after a likely encounter with low-level wind shear, resulting in a hard landing. Contributing to the accident were the pilot’s failure to recognize the severity of the actual and forecasted weather near the airport and his continued approach to the airport with a thunderstorm and associated convective activity.

Contributing factors

Contributing to the accident were the pilot’s failure to recognize the severity of the actual and forecasted weather near the airport and his continued approach to the airport with a thunderstorm and associated convective activity.

NTSB narrative

The pilot and one passenger were on an instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan, but the pilot cancelled the IFR clearance near the destination airport and proceeded under visual flight rules (VFR) even though there were nearby thunderstorms with associated convective activity. He reported that during the approach and while in ground effect, the winds were 5 to 10 knots with no turbulence, and he had at least one notch of flaps extended. During the flare to land the airplane abruptly pitched up without command and then nosed down, bouncing the airplane off the nose. The pilot added full throttle to abort the bounced landing and climbed to the traffic pattern altitude. He performed a right turn instead of a left turn due to the location of a rain cloud on the left side of the runway. He remained in right traffic for the runway and, when preparing to flare, a wind gust pushed the airplane across the runway. He performed a go-around but, because the rain cloud was no longer on the left side of the runway, he made standard left traffic for the runway. The pilot then landed uneventfully and taxied to the ramp. Postaccident examination of the airplane’s flight controls revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Based on this information, it is likely that while flaring to land, the airplane encountered low-level wind shear associated with a forecasted nearby thunderstorm. The airplane then descended and landed hard on the nose landing gear, substantially damaging the airplane’s fuselage.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Controlled flight into terrain
First missed decision gate
Pilot could have maintained IFR clearance instead of cancelling it.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • Video
  • ADS-B / radar
  • Photos
  • 8 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents8

Related mishaps