Cessna 182 accident near Danbury, Connecticut, December 31, 2001
On December 31, 2001 at about 4:25 pm local time, a Cessna 182, registered N42766, was substantially damaged in an accident near Danbury, Connecticut (Danbury 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).
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
- December 31, 2001 · about 4:25 pm local time
- Place
- Danbury, Connecticut · Danbury Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182 · all 182s on the register
- Registration
- N42766 · registry record · serial 18259181
- 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 landing on runway 26, when the airplane landed flat and bounced about four times, before it came to rest. The airplane sustained damage to the propeller, nose wheel and firewall. The student pilot did not report any mechanical problems with the airplane. She reported 45 hours of total flight experience, with 22 hours in make and model.
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
- Flight time: 45 hours in all; 22 in this make and model; 34 in the last 90 days; 22 in the last 30 days; 3 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,580 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 23, 2001; 28 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DXR Danbury CT at 4:05 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 26, 4,422 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 27°F (-3°C), dew point 7°F (-14°C)
- Altimeter: 29.97 inHg
- Observation at 4:53 pm from DXR
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.
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.