# NTSB CHI97LA036: Cessna 177, N30255, Regan, ND, December 3, 1996 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: December 3, 1996, 14:40 local (20:40 UTC) - Place: Regan, ND - Coordinates: 47.150974, -100.519119 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=47.1510&lon=-100.5191&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report August 25, 1997 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 10495 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CHI97LA036 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/10495/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI97LA036 ## Probable cause the pilot's intentional flight into adverse weather. Factors were clouds, the pilot's inadequate in-flight planning/decision making, his poor evaluation of the weather, and the encounter with unsuitable terrain for landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - In flight encounter with weather, descent - weather condition - clouds (contributing factor) - in-flight planning/decision - inadequate, pilot in command (contributing factor) - weather evaluation - poor, pilot in command (contributing factor) - flight into adverse weather - intentional, pilot in command (cause) - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, emergency landing - terrain condition - rough/uneven ## Analysis The pilot obtained a weather forecast in the morning for a flight initiated in the afternoon. While en route he encountered low clouds short of his destination. He called the airport of intended landing and found that the existing weather was instrument meteorological conditions. He descended through a hole in the clouds in an attempt to locate visual instrument conditions, was unable to do so, and made an emergency landing on unsuitable terrain. ## Factual narrative On December 3, 1996, at 1440 central standard time, a Cessna 177, N30255, sustained substantial damage during an emergency landing in a rough farm field, five miles east of Regan, North Dakota. The pilot told investigators that he was flying VFR on top and decided to descended below the clouds. When he did so, he was unable to maintain VFR and initiated an emergency landing in a rough farm field. The non-instrument rated private pilot and one passenger reported no injuries. The 14 CFR Part 91 flight encountered instrument meteorological conditions at the accident site. No flight plan was on file. The flight departed Harvey, North Dakota, about 1400, with the intended destination of Bismarck, North Dakota. The pilot said that he called for a weather briefing the morning of the accident. He said the weather was VFR at that time. He then initiated the flight about 1400, but attained no additional weather information, prior to the flight. He said that en route to Bismarck he encountered clouds obscuring the terrain and that he was "on top" at 4,000 feet mean sea level. He said that he called Bismarck, checking for VFR conditions, but found that the airport was reporting instrument meteorological conditions. He said that he then elected to descend through a hole in the clouds. He found that visibility and the ceiling prevented him from maintaining VFR and he conducted an emergency landing in a field which he said was approximately 36 miles northeast of Bismarck. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N30255](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N30255-1998-10-31), registration cancelled 1998-10-31, S/N 17701153 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 177 - Registry model: [Cessna 177](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-177) (registry code 2073704) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 17701153 - Airframe hours: 2050 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-E2D 150 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Charles D. Coffman - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, November 30, 1996, 5 hours before - Departed: ND17, HARVEY, ND - Destination: BIS, BISMARCK, ND - Flight plan: VFR ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 49; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: left; flight hours: 1,074 total, 354 in this make and model, 1,008 as pilot in command ## Weather - Conditions: Instrument (IMC), Day - Wind: 220° at 15 knots - Visibility: 0.25 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 100 ft overcast - Temperature: 19 °F ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 19961203046439A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19961203046439A), Dec 3, 1996: Cessna 177, Regan, ND, No damage. (-23) Pilot was enroute from harvey, ND to bismarck, ND at approximately 4,000'. He was above cloud layer and descended through hole in cloud layer. Visibility… ## Other investigations on N30255 (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 CHI98LA126](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI98LA126), Dec 29, 1997: Cessna 177 (N30255), Ft. Leonardwood, MO, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain adequate obstacle clearance and his inadequate inflight decision which resulted in VFR flight in to instrument meteorological conditions. The pilot's overconfidence in… 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.