Cessna 172 accident near Winston-Salem, North Carolina, May 6, 1996
On May 6, 1996 at about 3:45 pm local time, a Cessna 172, registered N97277, was substantially damaged in an accident near Winston-Salem, North Carolina (Smith Reynolds airport). It was a personal 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 pilot's improper use of the elevator in response to a bounced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 6, 1996 · about 3:45 pm local time
- Place
- Winston-Salem, North Carolina · Smith Reynolds · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 · all 172s on the register
- Registration
- N97277 · no longer on the register · serial 17276172
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot had been making touch and go landings and was executing his final landing. He reported that he elected to end the flight because of a fresh onset of stomach cramps from food poisoning the previous day. At touchdown, the airplane bounced which the pilot reported he countered by pulling the yoke aft. His next memory was of the airplane landing hard on the nose gear.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 86 hours in all; 42 in this make and model; 4 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 36 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D2J (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: INT at 3:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 3, 3,938 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 15,000 ft; scat at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:45 pm from INT, 1 miles away
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 N97277 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.