Cessna 172 N474SP

Summary

On 30 November 2017 at about 22:45 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N474SP, operated by Goddard Aircraft Club Inc, was involved in an accident near Bowie, Maryland, 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

30 November 2017 at 22:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Bowie, Maryland, United States

Nearest airport

Freeway (W00)

Coordinates

38.9456, -76.7733

Aircraft

Cessna 172

Registration

N474SP

Category

Airplane

Year built

1998

Engines

1

Operator

Goddard Aircraft Club Inc

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Ocean City → Bowie

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

GAA18CA074

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain situational awareness during the approach to land. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s distraction by the instrument panel during the approach.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, during approach to land in night conditions, he noticed that the airspeed displayed on a newly installed electronic flight instrument was reading slightly different than the airspeed indicator. He added that his altitude judgement was affected "by the scarcity of observable objects in the landing area, the 'black hole' effect, which was likely worsened by the brightness of the [electronic instrument]." When the pilot looked up from the instrument panel, he saw tree branches approaching. The airplane struck the trees and came to rest inverted. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.