- Date
- August 1, 1992, 23:05 local (Aug 2, 1992, 03:05 UTC)
- Place
- Grayling, MI
- Injuries
- 3 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N8183LCessna 172H
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report June 30, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920801032059A
- Case key
- 15305
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The non-instrument rated pilot intended a daytime cross country flight. The passenger arrived late, and the airplane departed after sunset. No record of a weather brief was found. Two hours after takeoff, the flight enentered an area of thundershowers and heavy rain. Residents near the crash site heard the loud engine noise of an airplane passing low overhead. The airplane collided with trees while heading away from its destination in a shallow descent, with 40 degrees right bank.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8183L
- Reported as
- Cessna 172H
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17256383
- Airframe hours
- 3,173
- Engine
- Continental O-300-D, 145 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Safety Flying Club, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Kevin Kennedy & 3 Partners
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 2, 1992 · 172 hours before
- Departed
- 1D2 · Plymouth, MI
- Destination
- ISQ · Manistique, MI
- Airport
- 55D · Grayling Aaf
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 67
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 537 total · 477 as pilot in command · 36 in the last 90 days · 13 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 190° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 4,500 ft broken
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- TVC, 45 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.