Cessna 172L N7221Q

Summary

On 13 September 2007 at about 01:30 local time, a Cessna 172L registered N7221Q was involved in an accident near Helena, Montana, United States. 2 people were 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

13 September 2007 at 01:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Helena, Montana, United States

Nearest airport

Helena Regional Airport (HLN)

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Cessna 172L

Registration

N7221Q

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Helena → Helena

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

LAX07CA279

Nobody was injured.

unexpected collision with birds on short final that damaged the airplane wing structure.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the pilot, as he was about 50 feet above ground level on short final over the threshold, the right wing leading edge of the airplane struck several birds. There were no significant changes in how the flight controls felt on subsequent inputs, and the airplane landed without further incident. The pilot stated that the flight departed the airport about 10 minutes prior to the collision, and they were conducting touch-and-go takeoffs and landings in moderate crosswind conditions. He stated that there were no NOTAM's in place warning of birds in the immediate area of the airport, and he did not have time to maneuver away from the birds.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.