NTSB Factual Report

On July 21, 2006, at 1915 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172F, N5324R, registered to a private owner, operating as a 14 CFR Part 91 sightseeing flight, collided with the tarmac while maneuvering at low altitude at the Richard B. Russell Airport in Rome, Georgia. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The airplane received substantial damage. The commercial pilot and two passengers reported serious injuries. The flight originated from the Richard B. Russell Airport in Rome, Georgia, on July 21, 2006, at 1855.

According to the pilot, the purpose of the flight was so the male passenger could propose marriage to his girl friend who was the other passenger in the airplane. Both passengers were in the back seats. The pilot said that he was to fly over the local area and then return to the airport. The pilot stated that he was to fly three circles over a banner that the family had placed on the tarmac, that said, "Will you marry me." The pilot said that the airplane was functioning normally at the time of the accident but believed he was too slow and low with an aft center of gravity.

According to a witness, the pilot's first approach was distant, and the pilot was instructed over the radio to circle around and travel over the banner due west. As the airplane turned east over runway 19, the airplane stalled for a second losing some altitude. The pilot radioed in his turns, and the witness could clearly hear the stall warning "siren," but the pilot regained control and turned back to the west. The airplane was very low, and very slow, at about 100 feet away and 75 feet above ground level as he crossed the tarmac. The witness stated that the airplane started to "wobble," and just before it reached the "Big Hangar the nose went up and the entire airplane turned left about 160-degrees first landing on its left wing, and then smashing down on its front." The witness stated that, as he started towards the wreckage the engine compartment burst into flames. When he arrived on-scene, everyone was clear of the wreckage and the rescue personnel began to arrive.

Examination of the airplane by an FAA Inspector found the left wing crushed and bowed upward, outboard of the wing strut. The nose gear was collapsed, and the engine, engine cowling, firewall, and cockpit were damage by impact, and the post-crash fire.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed, which resulted in an inadvertent stall, and subsequent impact with the ground.