Cessna 172 N5396D accident near Lynchburg, Virginia

Probable cause

The pilot's unstabilized approach, which resulted in an aborted go-around, an aerodynamic stall, and a hard landing.

NTSB analysis

The pilot reported that, during landing, the airplane approached with "extra speed" and ballooned in the landing flare. He added that, "instantly my training took over" and he applied power to go-around, but then also remembered he could not go around when landing in this direction, at this airport, due to terrain and obstacles. He further added that he then reduced power to idle and "stalled the airplane to the ground" and impacted the remining runway hard. Subsequently, he taxied the airplane to the ramp without further incident.

The ailerons, wings, and firewall sustained substantial damage.

During a telephone conversation with the NTSB investigator-in-charge, the pilot reported that he had flown into this airport numerous times prior to the accident and knew that, "once you get to the powerlines you are committed to landing." The power lines were located about ¼ nautical miles from the runway threshold.

The pilot did not report that there were any preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

The Federal Aviation Administration Chart Supplement for the airport stated in part: "Land Rwy [runway] 28 (west) tkf [takeoff] Rwy [runway] 10 (east)." The pilot reported that the landing was on runway 28.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for GAA17CA540 for the full record.