Aviation Crash Map

Cessna 172N N738FA

27 September 1999 · Des Moines, Iowa, United States · No injuries

Summary

On 27 September 1999 at about 03:46 local time, a Cessna 172N registered N738FA was involved in an accident near Des Moines, Iowa, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

The record

Date
at 03:46
Classification
Accident
Location
Des Moines, Iowa, United States
Nearest airport
Des Moines International (DSM)
Coordinates
41.5798, -93.6800
Aircraft
Cessna 172N
Registration
N738FA
Category
Airplane
Engines
1
Operator
Not recorded
Operating rule
Part 91: General Aviation
Purpose of flight
Personal
Phase of flight
Not recorded
Route
Woodruff → Unknown
Aircraft damage
Substantial
Weather
VMC
Light
Night/Dark
NTSB number
CHI99LA348

People

Nobody was injured.

On board Died Serious Minor Uninjured
1 0 0 0 1

Probable cause

the pilot's improper in-flight planning and decisions which led to fuel exhaustion. A factor relating to this accident was the telephone pole.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot said that 'he encountered engine failure' at 3,000 feet mean sea level. The pilot performed a forced landing to a street in a residential area, 1.6 miles east of the Des Moines International Airport, Des Moines, Iowa. The pilot said, 'Upon landing, I struck a telephone pole with the left wing.' Examination of the airplane's two main fuel tanks revealed no fuel. Approximately 1 pint of fuel was recovered from the accumulator tank and lines to the engine. No other anomalies were found.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.

Other Cessna 172 accidents

Date Aircraft Location Operator Outcome Died
18 Dec 1999 Cessna 172A
N34261
Shoshone, California, United States Charles R. Christman No injuries -
8 May 1999 Cessna 172M
N101PD
Lancaster, Texas, United States Marvin E. Scott Minor injuries -
3 Aug 1999 Cessna 172P
N6497K
Grants, New Mexico, United States Robertson Aviation Fatal 1
12 Jan 1999 Cessna 172
N6700A
Centre, Alabama, United States - No injuries -
12 Sep 1999 Cessna 172N
N534CA
San Jose, California, United States Concord Flight Intl, Inc No injuries -
26 Jan 1999 Cessna 172E
N5606T
Guymon, Oklahoma, United States Denny O'hara No injuries -

All 12,209 records for this type

Other accidents in this area

Date Aircraft Location Operator Outcome Died
8 Aug 1999 Bellanca 7GCAA
N5033G
Titonka, Iowa, United States - Fatal 1
28 Dec 1999 Cessna T210F
N6144R
Indianola, Iowa, United States - Serious injuries -
27 Oct 1999 Cessna 172
N52569
Waukon, Iowa, United States - No injuries -
24 Mar 1999 Piper PA-31-350
N812TB
Waterloo, Iowa, United States - No injuries -
14 Jul 1999 Cessna 172L
N19752
Montezuma, Iowa, United States - No injuries -
9 May 1999 Taylorcraft BC-12D
N96876
Newton, Iowa, United States Mark F. Criswell Fatal 1

All 170,864 records in United States