- Date
- May 28, 1985, 13:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Fryeburg, ME
- Injuries
- 4 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N53809Cessna C172P
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 35813
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 acft crashed in an uncontrolled attitude near the rwy from which it had recently departed. There was a 40 degree down swath cut through the trees to a crater in the ground. The engine was removed from the crash site and examined and nothing was found to prevent normal opertion. One witness reported seeing the acft shortly after liftoff at about 300 ft AGL and appeared to be almost in a stall. The engine sounded smooth but not running at full speed. The acft appeared heavy & sluggish. The wx was light rain, sort of a mist, at that time. The acft disappeared from this witness range of sight and was not seen again. The crash site was located the next day aided by signals from the ELT.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N53809
- Reported as
- Cessna C172P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17274820
- Airframe hours
- 2,171
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-D2J, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Gregory J. Burchstead
- Registered owner
- Flight Center, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · April 26, 1985 · 75 hours before
- Destination
- BVY · Beverly, MA
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
- 20
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Unknown, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 128 total · 13 in this make and model · 85 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 2 statute miles