Cessna 172R accident near Santa Maria, California, June 12, 2005
On June 12, 2005 at about 2:00 am local time, a Cessna 172R, registered N2384L, was substantially damaged in an accident near Santa Maria, California (Santa Maria Public 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 flare and recovery from a bounced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 12, 2005 · about 2:00 am local time
- Place
- Santa Maria, California · Santa Maria Public · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172R · all 172Rs on the register
- Registration
- N2384L · registry record · serial 17280706
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane landed flat, bounced, and landed hard on the nose wheel causing the propeller to strike the runway and damaging the firewall. The student pilot said that he had landed flat, but the landing was not as hard as some of his past landings. After touching down, the airplane bounced up and porpoised. The pilot added power and then the airplane came down hard on the nose wheel.
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
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 40 hours in all; 40 in this make and model; 29 in the last 90 days; 18 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-L2A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Pigs Can Fly Aviation, LLC
The flight
- Departed from: SBP San Luis Obispo CA
- Destination: SMX Santa Maria CA
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 30, 6,304 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 17 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 29.84 inHg
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 N2384L 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.