Cessna 172L N19703

Summary

On 17 September 2024 at about 18:30 local time, a Cessna 172L registered N19703 was involved in an accident near DeLand, Florida, 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

17 September 2024 at 18:30

Classification

Accident

Location

DeLand, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Deland Muni-Sidney H Taylor Fl (DED)

Coordinates

29.0670, -81.2838

Aircraft

Cessna 172L

Registration

N19703

Category

Airplane

Year built

1972

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA24LA384

Nobody was injured.

The parachutist’s failure to control his canopy which resulted in a downwind landing, an overshoot of the drop zone, and collision with a departing airplane.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight instructor explained that immediately after the airplane lifted from the runway, a parachutist beneath a fully fully-deployed canopy appeared from above and to the left of the high-winged airplane about 15-20 ft above ground level. The parachutist was aligned to cross the runway from left to right immediately to his front, so he turned right to raise the left wing in hopes of striking the parachute instead of the parachutist. Witnesses described the collision, pieces separating from the airplane, and the parachutist “skidding” across the runway before coming to rest unhurt. The instructor maneuvered the substantially substantially-damaged airplane and landed it successfully with both occupants emerging unhurt. According to the operator of the skydiving activity, the parachutist failed to enter the area surrounding the designated drop zone properly and into the wind, but instead overshot the landing zone in the downwind direction and crossed in front of the departing airplane. In a written statement, the parachutist explained that he was a “student” and that he lacked control of the canopy when he experienced a “sudden change of winds.” He stated that the wind “pushed” him in the direction of the departure runway. The parachutist added that because he was a student in a “highly good” training environment, that he would improve his “skills and experience” with more training.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.