Cessna 172P N230U accident near Athens, Ohio

Probable cause

The student pilot's failure to maintain directional control during landing. A factor contributing to the accident was a nose wheel vibration.

NTSB analysis

The airplane was substantially damaged when it departed the paved runway surface and struck a ditch, resulting in damage to the firewall and forward fuselage. The student pilot reported that the accident flight was his first solo flight without an instructor aboard. Immediately prior to the accident flight, the student and his instructor had made a flight which included landing practice. Subsequent to the accident flight, the instructor endorsed the student pilot's logbook authorizing the solo flight. The student pilot reported that he flew a traffic pattern approach to landing. After touchdown, he inadvertently added power to do a touch and go rather than a full stop landing. Upon realizing that he was to make a full stop landing, he reduced power and applied the brakes. He reported that the nose wheel began to shimmy, and he applied the brakes harder. The airplane subsequently went off the side of the runway into the grass, and struck a ditch before coming to a stop.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CHI08CA159 for the full record.