# Accident 19970317003249A: Cessna 172, Manchaca, TX, March 17, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 17, 1997, 18:36 local time
- Place: Manchaca, TX
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 30.1296° N, 97.8894° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.1296&lon=-97.8894&mi=10
- Aircraft: N6320E, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N6320E-1998-09-16) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 172 (registry code 2072402, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172
- Fatal injuries: 0
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW97LA123](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW97LA123) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970317003249A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) ON MARCH 16, 1997, AT 1836 CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, A CESSNA 172, N6320E, REGISTERED TO AND OPERATED BY A PRIVATE OWNER UNDER TITLE 14 CFR PART 91, WAS DESTROYED WHEN IT COLLIDED WITH POWER LINES DURING CRUISE FLIGHT NEAR MANCHACA, TEXAS. THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PRIVATE PILOT, SOLE OCCUPANT OF THE AIRPLANE, WAS SERIOUSLY INJURED. INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE PERSONAL CROSS COUNTRY FLIGHT THAT DEPARTED AUSTIN, TEXAS, ENROUTE TO SAN MARCOS, TEXAS. A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED. ACCORDING TO A WITNESS, WHO WAS INTERVIEWED BY AN FAA INSPECTOR, THE AIRPLANE'S ENGINE WAS OPERATING NORMALLY WHEN IT FLEW OVER HIS HOUSE, COLLIDED WITH HIGH TENSION POWER LINES, AND THEN ROLLED INVERTED BEFORE IMPACTING TREES. THE OUTBOARD SECTION OF THE RIGHT WING WAS SEVERED AND THE CABIN TOP SEPARATED FROM THE FUSELAGE. NO FIRE, NO NMAC.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB FTW97LA123](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW97LA123), Mar 17, 1997: Cessna 172 (N6320E), Manchaca, TX, destroyed. Probable cause: The pilot's continued VFR flight into instrument meteorological conditions and his failure to maintain obstacle clearance. A factor was the weather condition.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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