- Date
- June 28, 1999, 09:30 local (15:30 UTC)
- Place
- Union, IN
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N5869RCessna 172G
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 18, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19990628045809A
- Case key
- 46676
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 clearance with the sign. Factors associated with the accident were the low ceilings and the sign which was contacted.
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 airplane collided with a sign during an off airport landing. The pilot was flying pipeline patrol when the accident occurred. He reported that the weather quickly deteriorated during the flight. He stated that since the airplane was not approved for instrument flight, and there were no airports nearby, he elected to make an off airport landing. The pilot landed the airplane on a road during which time the left wing contacted a 2'x4' metal sign during the landing. This resulted in damage to both the forward and rear spars in the left wing.
Factual narrative
On June 29, 1999, at 0930 central standard time (cst), a Cessna 172, N5869R, operated by a commercial pilot collided with a sign during an off airport landing in Union, Indiana. The pilot was not injured. The airplane was substantially damaged. The 14 CFR Part 91 business flight was operating in visual meteorological conditions without a flight plan. The flight originated from Owensboro, Kentucky, at 0820 cst.
The pilot was flying pipeline patrol when the accident occurred. He reported that the weather quickly deteriorated during the flight. He stated that since the airplane was not approved for instrument flight, and there were no airports nearby, he elected to make an off airport landing. The pilot landed the airplane on a road during which time the left wing contacted a 2'x 4' metal sign during the landing. This resulted in damage to both the forward and rear spars in the left wing.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5869R
- Reported as
- Cessna 172G
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17253538
- Airframe hours
- 3,758
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial observation · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Norman A. Sinsel
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · June 10, 1999 · 81 hours before
- Departed
- OWB · Owensboro, KY
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
- 24
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,205 total · 664 in this make and model · 1,098 as pilot in command · 128 in the last 90 days · 20 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 300 ft broken
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 79 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.