Cessna 172 accident near Asheville, North Carolina, November 1, 2008
On November 1, 2008 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Cessna 172, registered N2055R, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Asheville, North Carolina (Asheville Regional 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 student pilot’s improper recovery from a bounced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 1, 2008 · about 7:30 pm local time · cases in 2008
- Place
- Asheville, North Carolina · Asheville Regional Airport · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 S · all 172s on the register
- Registration
- N2055R · registry record · serial 172S9581
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While conducting touch and go landings during the student pilot’s first solo flight, the Cessna 172S hit the runway "hard" and then bounced. The pilot added power, but the airplane "stalled" and the nose of the airplane pitched down, impacting the runway on the nose landing gear. The fuselage and firewall were substantially damaged during landing.
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
What happened, in order
- Hard landing during landing (flare/touchdown) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Incorrect action performance › Student pilot
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 18 hours in all; 18 in this make and model; 18 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,321 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 11, 2008
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO360 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Wnc Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: KAVL Asheville NC at 7:40 pm
- Destination: KAVL Asheville NC
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 34, 8,001 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.34 inHg
- Observation at 6:54 pm from KAVL
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The NTSB has not released the docket for this case yet. The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), is usually released when the investigation is nearly complete, and the list here is refreshed when it appears. Check at the NTSB.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N2055R on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 172 Skyhawk 20,686 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,677 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming IO360 8,559 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Asheville Regional · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in North Carolina 1,762 since 1982 · 304 in the last ten years
- North Carolina 7,123 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ERA09CA035.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.