# Accident 20000812039199A: Cessna 172, Davis, WV, August 12, 2000

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 12, 2000, 12:30 local time
- Place: Davis, WV
- Airport: Windwood Fly-In Resort Airport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: To Init Climb(1st Pwr Reduct)
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 39.1294° N, 79.4606° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.1294&lon=-79.4606&mi=10
- Aircraft: N8874B, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N8874B-2013-03-11) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 172 (registry code 2072402, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental 0-300 series (registry code 17022, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-300-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172
- Reported engine: CONT O300*
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 293 total, 57 in this make and model, 14 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB NYC00FA226](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC00FA226) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20000812039199A

## Narrative

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

(-23)WITNESSES STATED THE A/C APPEARED TO MAKE A NORMAL TAKEOFF ON RUNWAY 24. THE A/C CLIMBED TO APPROX. 300 FEET AGL AND ABRUPTLY NOSED DOWN IMPACTING THE GROUND IN A NEAR VERTICAL ATTITUDE. PIC HAD NOT FLOWN MAKE AND MODEL FOR 22 MONTHS. IT WAS ESTIMATED A/C WAS AT GROSS WEIGHT AT TIME OF ACCIDENT. DENSITY ALTITUDE ESTIMATED AT 4500MSL. WINDS ESTIMATED AS 8 KNOTS QUARTERING TAIL WIND. STUDENT PILOT OCCUPIED LEFT SEAT AT TIME OF ACCIDENT. PIC OCCUPIED RIGHT SEAT. (.4)SEVERAL MINUTES PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT FLIGHT, THE PILOT FLEW A SOLO FAMILIARIZATION FLIGHT IN THE ACCIDENT AIRPLANE. DURING THE SOLO FLIGHT, HE DEPARTED RUNWAY 6 AND RETURNED UNEVENTFULLY. THE PILOT THEN BOARDED THREE PASSENGERS FOR A SCENIC FLIGHT, AND OBSERVED THAT THE WIND WAS NOT FAVORING EITHER RUNWAY, AS IT WAS FROM THE NORTHWEST, ABOUT 330 DEGREES AT 10-12 KNOTS. THE AIRPLANE WAS NEAR THE MAXIMUM GROSS WEIGHT, AND THE DENSITY ALTITUDE AT THE AIRPORT WAS APPROXIMATELY 4,068 FEET MSL. TREES AND A HOUSE WERE AT THE DEPARTURE END OF THE 3,000-FOOT LONG RUNWAY. THE PILOT TAXIED TO RUNWAY 24, AND SEVERAL MINUTES LATER, PERFORMED A SHORT FIELD TAKEOFF. A WITNESS                                                         STATED THAT THE WINDS WERE FROM THE NORTHEAST WHEN THE ACCIDENT FLIGHT DEPARTED. AS THE AIRPLANE LIFTED OFF, THE PILOT OBSERVED THE WINDSOCK AGAIN. HE THEN REALIZED THAT THE WIND WAS FAVORING RUNWAY 6; HOWEVER, HE CONTINUED THE TAKEOFF. THE PILOT TRIED TO AVOID A HOUSE, AND THE AIRPLANE STALLED TO THE LEFT.

## 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 NYC00FA226](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC00FA226), Aug 12, 2000: Cessna 172 (N8874B), Davis, WV, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot-in-command's inadequate weather evaluation, which resulted in a takeoff with a tailwind, and a subsequent inadvertent stall. Factors were a high gross weight, a high density altitude, and a…

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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