Cessna 172 N224TA

Summary

On 23 February 2019 at about 17:25 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N224TA, operated by New Horizon Aviation Inc, was involved in an accident near Mansfield, Massachusetts, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

23 February 2019 at 17:25

Classification

Accident

Location

Mansfield, Massachusetts, United States

Nearest airport

Mansfield Municipal Airport (1B9)

Coordinates

42.0044, -71.1997

Aircraft

Cessna 172

Registration

N224TA

Category

Airplane

Year built

2002

Engines

1

Operator

New Horizon Aviation Inc

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Norwood → Mansfield

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA19FA107

2 people died.

The flight instructor's failure to maintain airplane control during initial climb after a touch-and-go landing, which resulted in an exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack and an aerodynamic stall.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

After practicing maneuvers during the instructional flight, the flight instructor and student pilot approached the airport for landing. Witnesses and airport surveillance video indicated that the airplane entered the landing flare, but continued to float down the runway a significant distance, touching down about 2,800 ft down the 3,503-ft-long runway. The pilots then initiated a takeoff (touch-and-go). Although the published airport traffic pattern for the runway indicated left turns, the airplane performed a climb in a steep right bank before slowing and entering a spiraling decent toward a grass area near the airport terminal building. Examination of the wreckage did not reveal any preimpact mechanical malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane. It is likely that the flight instructor allowed the airplane to exceed its critical angle of attack during a turning initial climb after a touch-and-go landing, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and impact with terrain. Although it could not be determined who was flying the airplane at the time of the accident, the flight instructor is ultimately responsible for the safety of the flight.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.