Cessna 172N accident near New Smyrna Bch, Florida, March 22, 1996
On March 22, 1996 at about 9:30 pm local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N75770, was substantially damaged in an accident near New Smyrna Bch, Florida (New Smyrna Beach Muni 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot's improper flare and improper recovery from a bounced landing, which resulted in an inadvertent porpoise, and subsequent overload failure of the nose gear.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 22, 1996 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- New Smyrna Bch, Florida · New Smyrna Beach Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N75770 · registry record · serial 726937
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot was on an approach for a full stop landing. He realized he was fast and reduced the power to idle and applied full flaps. He flared too late, and the airplane bounced and began to porpoise down the runway. Subsequently, the nose gear collapsed, and the airplane was substantially damaged.
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
- NOSE GEAR COLLAPSED during landing
Pilot
- Ratings: none, none, none, none
- Flight time: 14 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: class 1
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,896 hours
- Last inspection: type not recorded, February 20, 1996; 78 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,150 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-H2AD (piston); 0 hours total
- Operating certificate: in the vicinity
The flight
- Departed from: 34J at 8:10 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29, 4,300 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 310° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°C, dew point 0°C
- Altimeter: 29 inHg
- Observation at 8:56 pm from DAB, 6 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number MIA96LA105.