Cessna 177RG N1958Q accident near Lynden, Washington

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane during the landing approach, which resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack, an aerodynamic stall, hard landing, and a landing gear collapse.

NTSB analysis

The pilot reported that during the landing approach, the airplane abruptly stalled about 20 ft above the runway and touched down firmly. The pilot added full power to abort the landing and applied forward pressure on the control yoke to keep the nose down. Before a climb rate could be established to clear trees at the end of the runway, the airplane again stalled, touched down, and the landing gear collapsed. The airplane slid off the runway and the fuselage was substantially damaged. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for WPR20CA188 for the full record.