Cessna 152 accident near Melbourne, Florida, March 28, 2002
On March 28, 2002 at about 9:30 pm local time, a Cessna 152, registered N5530Q, was substantially damaged in an accident near Melbourne, Florida (Melbourne International airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The students pilot's failure to perform a go-around after a bounced landing condition that resulted in the on-ground collision with a ditch.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 28, 2002 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- Melbourne, Florida · Melbourne International · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 152 · all 152s on the register
- Registration
- N5530Q · no longer on the register · serial 15285117
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the student pilot, he was on a cross country flight from Daytona Beach, Florida, to Vero Beach, Florida, to Melbourne, Florida, and back to Daytona Beach. Upon approaching Melbourne, Florida, the student pilot was cleared by the Air Traffic Control Tower to land on runway 4. During landing the airplane bounced several times, ran off the end of the 3000 foot runway and collided with a ditch coming to rest inverted. The pilot reported that executing a go-around would have prevented this accident.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 64 hours in all; 64 in this make and model; 18 in the last 90 days; 11 in the last 30 days; 6 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,011 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 1,650 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Phoenix East Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: VRB Vero Beach FL at 7:40 pm
- Destination: DAB Melbourne FL
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 040, 3,002 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 77°F (25°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:46 pm from KMLB
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N5530Q the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.