Cessna 182 N96772

Summary

On 12 March 2018 at about 14:30 local time, a Cessna 182 registered N96772 was involved in an accident near Rockford, Illinois, 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 March 2018 at 14:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Rockford, Illinois, United States

Nearest airport

Chicago/Rockford Intl (RFD)

Coordinates

42.1953, -89.0972

Aircraft

Cessna 182

Registration

N96772

Category

Airplane

Year built

1979

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Dubuque → Rockford

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA18CA157

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s unnecessary action during the approach, which resulted in a hard landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that during landing, about 20 ft above ground level and about 80 kts, he reached for his iPad. He took his eyes off the runway to grab the device that was located on the seat next to him, and the airplane collided with the ground in a nose-down attitude. The pilot reported that he should not have taken his eyes off the runway during landing. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the lower fuselage stringers, longerons, and formers. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.