NTSB Factual Report

The pilot of the Cessna 152 was landing on a 3,297-foot-long runway. She reported that when the airplane touched down, it began to porpoise. She was not able to correct the bouncing, and elected to abort the landing. The pilot stated she "panicked" when she observed trees located off the end of the runway, and mistakenly retracted the flaps completely. The airplane climbed slowly, and impacted trees off the left side of the runway. It then nosed over, and impacted the ground. Examination of the airplane did not reveal any mechanical malfunctions, nor did the pilot report any. The pilot reported 140 hours of total flight experience, which included about 120 hours in the same make and model as the accident airplane.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's failure to recover from a bounced landing, and her improper use of flaps during an aborted landing, which resulted in an in-flight collision with trees.