# Accident 20220917009392A: Cessna 172S, Longmont, CO, September 17, 2022

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 17, 2022, 08:53 local time
- Place: Longmont, CO
- Airport: Longmont
- Damage: Destroyed
- Collision: Midair collision
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: Pilot school (Part 141)
- Operator: Y61S
- Location: 40.1052° N, 105.1226° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.1052&lon=-105.1226&mi=10
- Aircraft: N2117Y, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N2117Y-2023-10-20) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 172S (registry code 2072439, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172s) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming IO-360-L2A (registry code 41597, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-io-360-l2a) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172S
- Reported engine: LYCOMING IO-360-L2A
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot, flight instructor
- Pilot flight hours: 507 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN22FA424](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN22FA424) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20220917009392A

## Narrative

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

ON SEPTEMBER 17, 2022, ABOUT 0853 MOUNTAIN DAYLIGHT TIME, A CESSNA 172S, AND A

SONEX XENOS, WERE DESTROYED WHEN THEY WERE INVOLVED IN A MID-AIR ACCIDENT NEAR

LONGMONT, COLORADO. THE FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR AND STUDENT PILOT ABOARD THE CESSNA AND THE PILOT

ABOARD THE SONEX SUSTAINED FATAL INJURIES. THE CESSNA AND SONEX AIRPLANES WERE OPERATED AS

TITLE 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS PART 91 INSTRUCTIONAL AND PERSONAL FLIGHTS, RESPECTIVELY.

A REVIEW OF AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL (ATC) FLIGHT TRACK DATA REVEALED THE CESSNA DEPARTED ROCKY

MOUNTAIN MUNICIPAL AIRPORT (BJC), DENVER, COLORADO, ABOUT 0843, AND THE SONEX DEPARTED

PLATTE VALLEY AIRPARK (18V), HUDSON, COLORADO, ABOUT 0838. BOTH AIRPLANES CLIMBED TO ABOUT

7,000 FT MEAN SEA LEVEL (MSL) AND WERE OPERATING UNDER VISUAL FLIGHT RULES (VFR).

THE CESSNA FLEW NORTHBOUND AND THE SONEX FLEW WESTBOUND, BOTH TOWARD THE LONGMONT AREA.

AFTER COMPLETING A LEFT 360° TURN, THE CESSNA TURNED RIGHT TOWARD THE EAST IN THE DIRECTION OF

THE WESTBOUND SONEX. THE FLIGHT TRACK DATA OF THE TWO AIRPLANES MERGED AND SUBSEQUENTLY

SHOWED BOTH AIRPLANES RAPIDLY DESCENDING. FRAGMENTED SECTIONS OF THE OUTBOARD LEFT WINGS OF

BOTH AIRPLANES WERE FOUND BELOW THE MERGED FLIGHT TRACK DATA.

BOTH AIRPLANES IMPACTED NOSE DOWN IN A RURAL AREA WITH A GROUND ELEVATION OF ABOUT 5,100 FEET

MSL. THE MAIN WRECKAGE SITE OF THE CESSNA WAS ABOUT 1,800 FT SOUTHEAST OF THE WING FRAGMENTS.

THE MAIN WRECKAGE SITE OF THE SONEX WAS ABOUT 1,100 FT SOUTHWEST OF THE WING FRAGMENTS.

AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT, BOTH AIRPLANES TRANSMITTED A TRANSPONDER CODE OF 1200 (VFR).

NEITHER AIRPLANE WAS IN RADIO CONTRACT WITH ATC. THE CESSNA WAS EQUIPPED WITH AUTOMATIC

DEPENDENT SURVEILLANCE BROADCAST (ADS-B) “IN/OUT” EQUIPMENT AND WAS TRANSMITTING ADS-B

DATA DURING THE ACCIDENT FLIGHT. THE SONEX DID NOT TRANSMIT ADS-B DATA DURING THE ACCIDENT

FLIGHT AND ATC RECORDS INDICATED THE LAST ADS-B DATA WAS TRANSMITTED ON JULY 14, 2022.

BOTH AIRPLANES WERE RETAINED FOR FURTHER EXAMINATION.

## Other aircraft in the event

- N255BF, Bruce A Fritz XENOS: [Accident 20220917022842A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20220917022842A)

## 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 CEN22FA424](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN22FA424), Sep 17, 2022: Cessna 172S (N2117Y), Longmont, CO, destroyed, 3 fatal. Probable cause: The pilots’ inability to see and avoid each other, resulting in a midair collision.

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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