Cessna 172 N7239Q accident near Diamondhead, Mississippi

Probable cause

The student pilot's failure to retract the flaps following landing and the stall/mush that resulted during the subsequent full-flap takeoff and initial climb.

NTSB analysis

The student pilot obtained his first solo endorsement 10 days before the accident after he had accrued about 165 hours of flight experience. On the day of the accident, he was performing solo traffic pattern work, which included full-stop landings and then taxiing back for each subsequent takeoff. However, interpolation of radar data and the timing of the call to report the accident indicated that the pilot had performed a touch-and-go landing before the accident takeoff and flight.

A witness described the airplane at a low altitude and airspeed as it crossed, at treetop height, an interstate highway immediately beyond the departure end of the runway. The airplane then disappeared below the trees.

Examination of the wreckage site and the airplane wreckage revealed evidence consistent with engine power at impact and no preimpact mechanical anomaly. Measurement of the exposed threads of the flap actuator corresponded with a full-flap, 40° extension setting.

According to the manufacturer's owner's manual, "flap settings of 30° to 40° are not recommended at any time for take-off." Thus, because the pilot took off with 40° of flaps, the airplane was unable to attain the normal climb speed and entered a stall/mush from which the pilot could not recover because of the low altitude.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA18FA174 for the full record.