# Accident 19980131000849A: Cessna 172N, Valdosta, GA, January 31, 1998

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: January 31, 1998, 11:15 local time
- Place: Valdosta, GA
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Descent
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 30.8399° N, 83.2695° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.8399&lon=-83.2695&mi=10
- Aircraft: N738YK, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N738YK-1998-08-31) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 172N (registry code 2072434, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172n) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172N
- Reported engine: LYC O320H2AD
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Student
- Pilot flight hours: 31 total, 21 in this make and model, 3 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB MIA98LA063](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA98LA063) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980131000849A

## Narrative

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

STUDENT LOST CONTROL ON SPIRAL DESCENT AND IMPACTED GROUND. MANEUVER PERFORMED TOO LOW FOR TIMELY RECOVERY. (.4)THE STUDENT PILOT HAD FLOWN LOW OVER HIS FATHER WHO WAS ON A TRACTOR IN A FIELD NEAR THE CRASH SITE.  THE STUDENT THEN CLIMBED TO 3,000 FEET WHERE HE PERFORMED A DEPARTURE STALL, FOLLOWED BY A DESCENDING SPIRAL.  HE STATED THAT WHILE DESCENDING HE BECAME DISORIENTED AND DID NOT RECOVER FROM THE DESCENDING SPIRAL BEFORE IMPACT WITH THE GROUND.  HE FURTHER STATED THAT HE HAD BUZZED SOMEONE ON AN EARLIER FLIGHT AND WAS ADVISED BY HIS FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR NOT TO DO SO AGAIN.  HE ALSO STATED THAT THERE WAS NO AIRFRAME OR ENGINE PREIMPACT FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION.

## 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 MIA98LA063](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA98LA063), Jan 31, 1998: Cessna 172N (N738YK), Valdosta, GA, substantial damage. Probable cause: The failure of the student to recover (pull-up) from the intentional maneuver resulting in the in-flight collision with terrain. Contributing to the accident was the ostentatious display by the…

## Other reports on N738YK (2)

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

- [Incident 19950831036849I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19950831036849I), Aug 31, 1995: Cessna 172N (N738YK), Valdosta, GA, Minor damage. Lost directional control on first solo second takeoff. Struck runway sign.
- [Accident 19790218003169A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19790218003169A), Feb 18, 1979: Cessna 172 (N738YK), Sabin, MN, Substantial damage. Engine stopped on cross-country flight. Landed in deep snow,flipped over. Cause unknown.

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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