# Accident 19971228044519A: Cessna 177B, Ft Leonard Wood, MO, December 28, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 28, 1997, 19:30 local time
- Place: Ft Leonard Wood, MO
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Scud Running
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 37.9408° N, 91.7606° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=37.9408&lon=-91.7606&mi=10
- Aircraft: N30255, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N30255-1998-10-31) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 177 (registry code 2073704, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-177) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 177B
- Reported engine: LYC O320E2D
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 1,200 total, 450 in this make and model
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI98LA126](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI98LA126) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19971228044519A

## Narrative

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

DEPARTED VFR INTO IMC IN HEAVY SNOW SHOWERS. LOST CONTROL. CRASHED. FOUND 4 MONTHS LATER. (.4)THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PILOT OBTAINED OUTLOOK AND ABBREVIATED WEATHER BRIEFINGS BEFORE DEPARTING ON AN EXTENDED CROSS COUNTRY.  DURING THE ABBREVIATED WEATHER BRIEFING THE FAA'S FSS SPECIALIST ADVISED THE PILOT THAT '...VFR FLIGHT IS NOT RECOMMENDED.'  THE PILOT SAID HE WOULD CALL THE FAA FSS BACK BEFORE DEPARTURE.  THERE WAS NO RECORD OF A RETURN CALL BY THE PILOT.  LATER IN THE DAY, THE PILOT LANDED AT AN AIRPORT MIDWAY BETWEEN HIS DEPARTURE AIRPORT AND PLANNED DESTINATION.  WHILE AT THE AIRPORT HE REFUELED THE AIRPLANE AND OBTAINED A WEATHER BRIEFING.  THE PILOT TOLD THE AIRPORT MANAGER THAT THE FSS SPECIALIST TOLD HIM THAT VFR FLIGHT WAS NOT RECOMMENDED.  THE MANAGER SUGGESTED THE PILOT FLY SOUTH INTO EASTERN KANSAS, WEST OF THE WEATHER SYSTEM, LAND AND CHECK THE WEATHER BEFORE CONTINUING.  RELATIVES REPORTED THE PILOT MISSING ON DECEMBER 28, 1997. THE AIRPLANE WAS FOUND ON APRIL 17, 1998.  THE ON-SCENE EXAMINATION REVEALED THE AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH TREES, TERRAIN AND WAS DESTROYED BY FIRE.  EXAMINATION OF THE AIRFRAME, ENG                                                            INE AND FLIGHT CONTROLS SYSTEM REVEALED NO ANOMALIES THAT WOULD HAVE PREVENTED FLIGHT. WEATHER REPORTED ABOUT 60 MILES SOUTHWEST AND 35 MILES NORTHEAST OF THE ACCIDENT SITE SHOWED IMC CONDITIONS AT THE APPROXIMATE TIME OF ACCIDENT.

## 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 CHI98LA126](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI98LA126), Dec 29, 1997: Cessna 177 (N30255), Ft. Leonardwood, MO, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain adequate obstacle clearance and his inadequate inflight decision which resulted in VFR flight in to instrument meteorological conditions. The pilot's overconfidence in…

## Other reports on N30255 (1)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Accident 19961203046439A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19961203046439A), Dec 3, 1996: Cessna 177 (N30255), Regan, ND, No damage. (-23) Pilot was enroute from harvey, ND to bismarck, ND at approximately 4,000'. He was above cloud layer and descended through hole in cloud layer. Visibility…

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.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.