Cessna 152 N47259

Summary

On 12 February 2016 at about 15:00 local time, a Cessna 152 registered N47259, operated by Mars Aerospace Inc., was involved in an accident near Shirley, New York, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

12 February 2016 at 15:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Shirley, New York, United States

Nearest airport

Brookhaven (HWV)

Coordinates

40.8292, -72.8631

Aircraft

Cessna 152

Registration

N47259

Category

Airplane

Year built

1979

Engines

1

Operator

Mars Aerospace Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

New York → Shirley

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA16CA124

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate terrain clearance while landing, which resulted in a collision with a snow berm, nose gear collapse, and postimpact fire.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that on his second landing he felt a "small" impact just before touchdown, and then the airplane pitched down and skidded to a stop. The pilot further reported that after the airplane came to a stop, he observed smoke coming from the lower left side of the cowling just forward of the firewall. As a result of the post-impact fire that ensued, the airplane was destroyed. The pilot reported that he observed evidence of where the airplane's nose wheel impacted a snow berm located on the approach to the runway. He estimated that the snow berm was about five feet high and about twenty feet wide. The airport manager reported that about four inches of snow accumulated on the ground prior to the accident, but that almost all of the snow had been plowed from the runway. He further reported that the accident airplanes nose gear impacted a snow berm that was about 10 feet off the end of the runway, and about 28 inches high. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.