NTSB Factual Report

On September 6, 2011, at 1005 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 152, N4649L, landed hard on runway 26 at Redlands Municipal Airport (REI), Redlands, California. Accelerated 360 operated the airplane under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as an instructional flight. The certified flight instructor (CFI) and student were not injured. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local area flight, and no flight plan had been filed.

The CFI reported that part of the preparation training for a flight students' first solo was to cover ballooning and recovery procedures from a failed landing. They had already been flying for an hour when the CFI realized that she had not covered that portion of the flight. The CFI had the student set up for the maneuver by making a fast approach. Once they were in the flare for landing, the CFI pitched the nose up higher than the normal pitch attitude angle, which simulated the balloon affect. Once the airplane began to slow/stall, they proceeded to end the maneuver. She instructed the student to perform a go around. The student applied full power by advancing the throttle; however, it took a full second for the engine to achieve full power. By that time, the airplane had stalled and was left of centerline. The CFI reported that she corrected the airplane to the right, but that the airplane was falling quickly. It struck the ground, the nose wheel snapped off, and then the propeller struck the ground. The airplane remained upright, and slid forward to a stop.

According to a witness on the tarmac at the time of the accident, he heard the airplane, turned toward the runway, and saw the airplane rolling westbound down the runway. At that point all three wheels were on the ground. He stated that the airplane did not have enough power to take off, but had too much power to have just landed. He continued to watch the airplane to see if it was going to try and takeoff again. The witness stated that he thought the airplane had a medium power setting. He watched the airplane as it ballooned off the ground at an approximate angle of 45 degrees. It reached a height of about 50 feet, and then dipped back down toward the runway. The left wing struck the ground, and then bounced off the runway again, this time reaching an approximate height of 30 feet above the ground. At this point the airplane was in a nose down attitude and impacted the ground adjacent to the runway. The witness went to render assistance, and as the CFI exited the airplane, she indicated that she was at the flight controls at the time of the accident.

The pilot did not complete the National Transportation Safety Board Pilot/Operator aircraft Accident/Incident Form, 6120.1/2.

NTSB Probable Cause

The flight instructor’s delayed remedial action and failure to maintain airplane control while performing a simulated aborted landing.