20150911016489A

Accident · Destroyed

FAA accident report · Cessna 172P · Riegelwood, NC · September 11, 2015

Date: September 11, 2015 · 15:10 local
Place: Riegelwood, NC
Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Destroyed
Aircraft: N52445
NTSB investigation: NTSBERA15FA351
Reported as: Cessna 172P
Reported engine: Lycoming 0-320 series
People aboard: 1
Fatal injuries: 1
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Unknown or foreign certificate

N52445Registration cancelled Mar 30, 2018 · Cessna 172PS/N 17274526 · Built 1980 Airframe modelCessna 172P Engine modelLycoming 0-320 seriesReciprocating

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

The accident aircraft took off from a privately owned grass airstrip flown by a uncertificated pilot. The takeoff appeared to be normal. The aircraft climbed on a northernly heading and crashed approximately 2 miles north of the departing airstrip. The aircraft crashed in a clear cut area full of tree limbs and stumps at a high velocity low angle of impact. The wing flaps were in the up position and the aircraft was considered destroyed.

As the FAA filed it

THE ACCIDENT AIRCRAFT TOOK OFF FROM A PRIVATELY OWNED GRASS AIRSTRIP FLOWN BY A UNCERTIFICATED PILOT. THE TAKEOFF APPEARED TO BE NORMAL. THE AIRCRAFT CLIMBED ON A NORTHERNLY HEADING AND CRASHED APPROXIMATELY 2 MILES NORTH OF THE DEPARTING AIRSTRIP. THE AIRCRAFT CRASHED IN A CLEAR CUT AREA FULL OF TREE LIMBS AND STUMPS AT A HIGH VELOCITY LOW ANGLE OF IMPACT. THE WING FLAPS WERE IN THE UP POSITION AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS CONSIDERED DESTROYED.

NTSB investigation

The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.

NTSB ERA15FA351Accident · 1 fatalField investigationFinal reportRiegelwood, NCThe noncertificated pilot’s failure to maintain adequate clearance from terrain for reasons that could not be determined based on the available evidence.Sep 11, 2015 · Substantial damage

Other reports on N52445 · 1

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

Incident 19941022038859ITakeoff Ground Roll · Wilmington, NCStruck a deer during takeoff roll.Oct 22, 1994 · Minor damage