Cessna 172 N8324E accident near Urbana, Ohio

Probable cause

The pilot's abnormal runway contact during the landing flare, which resulted in a porpoise, hard landing, and runway excursion.

NTSB analysis

In a telephone interview with the NTSB Investigator-in-charge (IIC), the pilot stated that the airplane porpoised during landing, then veered left off the runway and onto an intersecting runway.

A postaccident examination revealed substantial damage to the firewall.

According to the pilot there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation.

A review of recorded data from the automated weather observation station located about 14 miles northwest of the airport, revealed that, about 7 minutes before the accident the wind was 310 degrees true at 8 knots, and wind gusts 16 knots. The airplane landed on runway 02.

The Federal Aviation Administration has published the Airplane Flying Handbook FAA-H-8083-3A (2004). This handbook discusses porpoising and states in part:

In a bounced landing that is improperly recovered, the airplane comes in nose first setting off a series of motions that imitate the jumps and dives of a porpoise—hence the name. The problem is improper airplane attitude at touchdown, sometimes caused by inattention, not knowing where the ground is, mistrimming or forcing the airplane onto the runway.

Ground effect decreases elevator control effectiveness and increases the effort required to raise the nose. Not enough elevator or stabilator trim can result in a nose low contact with the runway and a porpoise develops.

Porpoising can also be caused by improper airspeed control. Usually, if an approach is too fast, the airplane floats and the pilot tries to force it on the runway when the airplane still wants to fly. A gust of wind, a bump in the runway, or even a slight tug on the control wheel will send the air plane aloft again.

The corrective action for a porpoise is the same as for a bounce and similarly depends on its severity. When it is very slight and there is no extreme change in the airplane's pitch attitude, a follow-up landing may be executed by applying sufficient power to cushion the subsequent touchdown, and smoothly adjusting the pitch to the proper touchdown attitude.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for GAA16CA301 for the full record.