Cessna 172S accident near Honolulu, Hawaii, August 13, 2004
On August 13, 2004 at about 8:53 pm local time, a Cessna 172S, registered N3554Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Honolulu, Hawaii (Honolulu 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 student pilot's misjudged flare, which resulted in a hard landing. Also causal was the student pilot's improper recovery from a bounced landing and pilot induced porpoise and failure to maintain directional control on the landing roll, which resulted in the nose gear collapsing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 13, 2004 · about 8:53 pm local time
- Place
- Honolulu, Hawaii · Honolulu International Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172S · all 172Ss on the register
- Registration
- N3554Y · no longer on the register · serial 172S8956
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane experienced a hard landing, porpoised, and veered off the runway. The student pilot was attempting to land. During the landing flare, the airplane touched down hard and bounced back into the air. The airplane continued to bounce down the runway, veering to the right. On the third bounce the nose gear collapsed and the airplane continued to the right, off the runway, coming to rest on a grass median. The student pilot did not report any mechanical problems with the airplane prior to the 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
Pilot
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 54 hours in all; 54 in this make and model; 14 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-L2A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PHJR Kapolei HI
- Destination: PHNL Honolulu HI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 04L
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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 N3554Y 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.