Cessna 182 N2056X accident near Dickinson, North Dakota

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to maintain aircraft control during landing in gusting wind conditions which resulted in a hard landing.

NTSB analysis

The pilot reported that during landing the airplane ballooned and she executed a go-around. Before the airplane accelerated for the go-around it struck the ground hard and then became airborne again. The pilot said that during the second landing attempt a wind gust picked the airplane up and it hit the runway hard and began to porpoise. She believed that the airplane hit hard twice before she was able to get the airplane stopped. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

The airplane received substantial damage to the forward fuselage. The recorded wind at the accident airport were reported as 23 kts, gusting to 32 kts.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN26LA214 for the full record.