- Date
- September 27, 1992, 16:45 local (22:45 UTC)
- Place
- Fort Collins, CO
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N5222DCessna 172N
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 26, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 18236
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 directional control of the airplane. A factor was: crosswind.
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 student pilot flared the airplane for landing when a gust of wind caused the airplane to depart the left side of the runway. The pilot closed carburetor heat, applied full throttle, and began retracting the flaps in an attempt to abort the landing. The pilot saw a ditch and attempted to avoid it, but the left wind tip struck a tree branch and the right main landing gear hit the ditch, spinning the airplane around. Winds were reported gusting to 25 knots.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5222D
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17272456
- Airframe hours
- 4,310
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-H2AD, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- The Pilot Center
- Registered owner
- Zelenak, Steve & Amy
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 11, 1992 · 46 hours before
- Airport
- 3V5 · Downtown Fort Collins, runway 11, 4,699 × 48 ft, asphalt
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
- 58
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 32 total · 26 in this make and model · 4 as pilot in command · 14 in the last 90 days · 10 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 70° at 18 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 72 °F, dew point 27 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- FCL, 10 nm away