Cessna 172N N6486J

Summary

On 12 October 1998 at about 16:20 local time, a Cessna 172N registered N6486J was involved in an accident near Buhl, Idaho, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

12 October 1998 at 16:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Buhl, Idaho, United States

Nearest airport

Buhl Municipal (U03)

Coordinates

42.5991, -114.8394

Aircraft

Cessna 172N

Registration

N6486J

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Twin Falls → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA99LA002

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to follow the aircraft's recommended balked landing procedure, resulting in a stall. Factors include the pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing flare, the pilot's lack of total experience, and insufficient altitude available for stall recovery.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

During the landing flare, the aircraft ballooned upward and the student pilot added power to regain control. The aircraft then drifted to the north side of the runway so the pilot elected to make a go-around. Full power was added and the flaps were raised from full (40 degrees) to zero. The stall warning horn sounded and the aircraft dropped, impacting terrain to the side of the runway. According to the Cessna 172N Pilot's Operating Handbook (POH), the aircraft's recommended balked landing procedure is to raise the flaps to 20 degrees, obtain a climb speed of 55 knots indicated airspeed (KIAS), raise flaps to 10 degrees until obstacles are cleared, and completely retract flaps at a safe altitude and 60 KIAS. The airplane's wings-level stall speed ranges from approximately 41 KIAS (47 knots calibrated airspeed [KCAS]) with full flaps to approximately 47 KIAS (53 KCAS) with flaps up. Maximum altitude loss during a stall recovery in the Cessna 172N may be as much as 180 feet. The student pilot, who received his initial solo endorsement 11 days before the accident, reported his total time as 14 hours.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.