Cottonwood Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Cottonwood, Arizona 86326
Thursday, May 24, 2001 16:16 MST

The airplane impacted terrain during an attempted rejected landing after the student loss control of the airplane during a landing roll. The flight instructor reported the student conducted a uneventful landing on runway 14 with proper control inputs and had placed the aircraft within 3 feet of centerline. As the airplane's nose wheel settled on the runway, the right wing "suddenly lifted, the aircraft rotated to the left, and [the airplane was] airborne." The flight instructor took control of the aircraft, applied full power, lowered the nose, and attempted to regain control of the airplane. As he maneuvered the aircraft to the left toward a clearing away from a building, the airplane impacted the ground with the left wing first, followed by the nose. The student had utilized 30 degrees of flaps during the landing and had not raised the flaps during the landing roll. A witness indicated that their flights were cancelled that day due to the gusty crosswind conditions. The closest weather observation facility reported the wind from 230 degrees (variable between 200 and 260 degrees) at 10 knots gusting to 20 knots. The flight school's Airplane Maneuvers Guide, under a section titled "Normal and Crosswind Approach and Landing," had a note indicating, "CROSSWIND CONDITIONS MAY REQUIRE A REDUCED FLAP SETTING FOR APPROACH AND LANDING. CARE MUST BE EXCERCISED TO ENSURE ADEQUATE RUNWAY LENGTH." The section also indicates, "Gusty wind conditions may require a touchdown at a slightly higher speed than normal (5-10 KIAS above power-off stall speed) and a slightly lower than normal pitch attitude. A reduced flap setting may also be necessary." The Pilot Information Manual for the accident airplane indicates that the maximum demonstrated crosswind component was 15 knots. Review of the student's flight records revealed he had received an unsatisfactory rating during a stage check flight about 1 month prior to the accident. One of the reasons listed for the unsatisfactory rating was "improper x-wind (crosswind) correction during taxi."

the student's inadequate compensation for the gusty crosswind conditions and the subsequent loss of aircraft control during landing roll. The flight instructor’s inadequate supervision and his inadequate remedial action is also causal. Contributing factors were the gusty and crosswind weather conditions.