NTSB Factual Report

According to a Federal Aviation Administration inspector, the non-instrument-rated pilot of the Cessna 172 reported that he and a passenger took off in clear skies for an early morning breakfast at an airport about 125 nautical miles to the northeast. Upon reaching the destination, the pilot found he could not descend below a cloud layer, and opted to return to the departure airport. Upon arrival at that airport, it was also covered by a low cloud layer, so the pilot continued to the south, toward rising terrain, to find a suitable airport to land. About 15 miles away, he found a hole in clouds and descended. With continued low ceilings and low fuel, the pilot made a precautionary landing to a field. During the landing roll, the pilot "lost control" of the airplane. The right wingtip struck the ground, then the left main landing gear folded inboard, the nose landing gear collapsed, and the outboard 3 feet of the left wing bent upwards about 30 degrees. The pilot did not obtain a weather briefing or file a flight plan, and no mechanical anomalies were noted with the airplane.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's inadequate preflight planning. Contributing to the accident were the overcast cloud conditions and the pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll.