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| Date: | Sunday 30 June 2024 |
| Time: | 15:38 |
| Type: |  Cessna F172N Skyhawk II (Reims) |
| Owner/operator: | Aeroflight.fr |
| Registration: | F-GCHO |
| MSN: | F17201917 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1979 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Collégien, Seine-et-Marne, Île-de-France -
 France
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Lognes-Emerainville Airfield (LFPL) |
| Lognes-Emerainville Airfield (LFPL) | |
| Investigating agency: | BEA |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
A Cessna F172N Skyhawk II, F-GCHO, collided with high-voltage power lines and crashed on a motorway near Lognes-Emerainville Airfield (LFPL), France. All three on board were killed.
Upon returning from a local flight from LFPL, the pilot provided the air traffic controller with information that was inconsistent with his actual position. He reported being five minutes from point ECHO, then at ECHO, when in fact he was approximately four nautical miles further east. He later asked whether he had passed ECHO while he was still around one nautical mile from the point. Additionally, he read back to the controller that he was flying over the airfield at 1,500 ft, while he actually continued descending and leveled off at a very low altitude (less than 150 ft), flying approximately two nautical miles over a highway, without requesting any assistance from the air traffic controller.
Radar tracking and accident video footage show that the flight remained under control up to the collision with a power line. No technical malfunctions were identified with the aircraft during the investigation, and the power line was visible from the aircraft, properly identified, and marked according to aeronautical regulations.
The investigation was unable to determine why the pilot maintained level flight for over a minute at an abnormally low altitude, which did not provide a sufficient safety margin to clear obstacles and without notifying the controller of any difficulties.
Contributing Factors
The accident occurred during the pilot’s first flight since his solo authorization at the Lognes – Émerainville airfield, which is known for its traffic density and limited airspace. It was also his first flight without an instructor since obtaining his Private Pilot License (PPL) a few months earlier, and his first flight as pilot in command with passengers.
This lack of experience, combined with his navigational error, may have caused significant stress and contributed to difficulties managing the situation.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://www.francebleu.fr/infos/faits-divers-justice/seine-et-marne-trois-morts-dans-le-crash-d-un-avion-de-tourisme-l-a4-coupee-dans-les-deux-sens-4182142
https://www.leparisien.fr/faits-divers/seine-et-marne-trois-morts-dans-le-crash-dun-avion-de-tourisme-sur-la4-30-06-2024-OPJLZQGF7VAS3KM66WSSM3MFNA.php
https://bea.aero/en/investigation-reports/notified-events/detail/accident-to-the-cessna-f172-registered-f-gcho-on-30-06-2024-near-lognes-ad/
https://www.flightaware.com/live/flight/FGCHO/history/20240630/1300Z
https://cdn.jetphotos.com/full/6/92274_1595112630.jpg (photo)
Location
Images:
Media:
❗️ ✈️[ ?? FRANCE ]
— Life Info (@life_Info__) June 30, 2024
? Trois personnes ont été tuées dans le #Crash d’un petit avion de tourisme sur l’autoroute #A4, en #SeineetMarne. pic.twitter.com/ra6msAxJEp
SEINE-ET-MARNE : Trois morts dans le crash d'un avion de tourisme sur l'autoroute A4, près du centre commercial Bay 2. L'appareil a heurté une ligne à haute tension avant de s'écraser (AFP / pompiers). pic.twitter.com/u96XwKEA5F
— Infos Françaises (@InfosFrancaises) June 30, 2024
Accident a4, l'avion est carrément à l'envers @autoroute a4 pic.twitter.com/h2W879GL9Q
— AdrienL (@AdrienLge) June 30, 2024
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 30-Jun-2024 16:24 | gerard57 | Added |
| 30-Jun-2024 16:42 | ASN | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator, Source, Embed code, ] |
| 30-Jun-2024 16:50 | ASN | Updated [Time, Location, Departure airport, Embed code, Narrative, Category, ] |
| 30-Jun-2024 16:53 | ASN | Updated [Source, Narrative, ] |
| 30-Jun-2024 20:52 | RobertMB | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Cn, Operator, Location, Destination airport, Source, Damage, Narrative, ] |
| 30-Jun-2024 21:04 | Iceman 29 | Updated [Embed code, Damage, ] |
| 30-Jun-2024 21:05 | Iceman 29 | Updated |
| 30-Jun-2024 21:37 | RobertMB | Updated [Phase, Embed code, Narrative, ] |
| 01-Jul-2024 09:28 | Iceman 29 | Updated [Photo, ] |
| 01-Jul-2024 09:31 | Iceman 29 | Updated [Narrative, Photo, ] |
| 05-Jul-2024 13:12 | ASN | Updated [Source, ] |
| 05-Jul-2024 20:23 | Captain Adam | Updated [Source, Narrative, ] |
| 24-Apr-2025 18:14 | ASN | Updated [Narrative, Accident report, ] |
| 11-Sep-2025 19:02 | ASN | Updated [Accident report, ] |
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